&gt; <i>It kind of surprises me that software, a creative and digital medium like the above, is not futile and that you can still make a good living at it.</i><p>The thing that differentiates software is that it often enables other people to make or save significant amounts of money. That&#x27;s something you usually can&#x27;t say about music or photography, and when you can say it, like with advertising, there&#x27;s money to be made. If you look at software that doesn&#x27;t make or save anyone money (e.g. most mobile apps) there isn&#x27;t actually a ton of money in it for your average creator, just like other creative mediums.