Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!usc!hacgate!ashtate!dbase!tomr
From: tomr@dbase.A-T.COM (Tom Rombouts)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.misc
Subject: Re: Software "Engineers"
Message-ID: <1991Apr25.234953.20537@dbase.A-T.COM>
Date: 25 Apr 91 23:49:53 GMT
References: <3844@ssc-bee.ssc-vax.UUCP> <3379@charon.cwi.nl>
Reply-To: tomr@dbase.UUCP (Tom Rombouts)
Organization: Ashton-Tate
Lines: 24

>dmg@ssc-vax.uucp (David M Geary) writes:
>
>There is no one correct way to write, for instance, a database.  Developing
>software is much more of an art, and less of a science than engineering.
>As a matter of fact, that is why I *like* software development more than
>engineering.  You get to be more creative.

Some of you may recall an article by Karen Hooten in "Computer Language"
last year titled "An Engineer by Any Other Name"  As I recall, there
had been several legal decisions stating that as of this point in time
software developers are _not_ engineers.  This was due in part to any
sort of standard training or licensing, akin to that found in other
professions such as law or medicine.  Also, "Computerworld" had an 
article recently mentioning yet another court case trying to establish
a precedent of software malpractice.  (I believe it was thrown out.)
As of this point, this has yet to be successfully established.


I personally think it is pretentious for programmers to call
themselves "engineers", but wasn't it Shakespeare himself who said
in one of his plays "Assume a virtue if you have it not"  ?  :-)


Tom Rombouts  Torrance 'Tater  tomr@ashtate.A-T,com