The problem with programming and how to fix it
I believe that software is not a professional practise but a new form of literacy (in fact the book I am writing is all about this (Real Soon Now, thanks for asking))<p>And when you see software as literacy a lot of the stuff he moans about simply goes away.<p>Yes it is seen as exclusive and a priesthood - imagine what illiterate serfs thought of those who could write.  It took years of practise.<p>No it&#x27;s not a good idea to make programming more accessible.  We don&#x27;t have easy literature, we don&#x27;t think someone who reads and writes solely with fridge magnets (#) has mastered the language.  It is a good idea to invest more in education and that is being done reasonably well, but as in all things more is needed.<p>Yes the results can be a car crash at times - my favourite analogy for this is our management structures.<p>Would we ever take a literate organisation like the Washington Post or Harper Collins and put a layer of senior management in place who were totally illiterate from birth? If we did do we think they would make sensible decisions, empower those organisations? No.<p>Yes there is a lot of shiny new thing, going on. But that&#x27;s because there are a lot of people doing software - and many of them select for being good at marketing too.  The real big software projects tend to select for conservatism married to pragmatism- look at Linus on a mailing list or the PEP process, or Debian.<p>So yeah software needs to sort it self out - and professional bodies will start to solidify (personally I feel a lawyer like body, concerned with managing the course of OSS code used in government is the most beneficial), and until then don&#x27;t try and fix the world or boil the ocean - just focus on making your coding practises as good as possible, even if your boss is making crazy calls.<p>(#) Wanted: Better analogys - can you write pithy phrases that sizzle like ice cream on a griddle? Contact the author in complete confidence today.