Software Engineering, Not Computer Science

Steve McConnell (author of the classic book on software construction, Code Complete) makes some great points in this article on why programmers are not scientists. He touches on many of the problems plaguing the software industry and their causes.

When interviewing candidates for programming jobs, one of my favorite interview questions is, "How would you describe your approach to software development?" I give them examples such as carpenter, fire fighter, architect, artist, author, explorer, scientist, and archeologist, and I invite them to come up with their own answers. Some candidates try to second-guess what I want to hear; they usually tell me they see themselves as "scientists." Hot-shot coders tell me they see themselves as commandos or swat-team members. My favorite answer came from a candidate who said, "During software design, I'm an architect. When I'm designing the user interface, I'm an artist. During construction, I'm a craftsman. And during unit testing, I'm one mean son of a bitch!"

This article was published in McConnell's book Professional Software Development.

• Software Engineering, Not Computer Science (via reddit)
  Update: the post seems to have been removed. You can still read the original manuscript below, or buy his book.
• PDF of original manuscript