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ACM and IEEE collaborated and agreed on a Software Engineering Code of Ethics decades ago http://www.acm.org/about/se-code http://www.acm.org/about/se-code Ca

ACM and IEEE collaborated and agreed on a Software Engineering Code of Ethics decades ago http://www.acm.org/about/se-code http://www.acm.org/about/se-code Can we not reinvent this particular wheel please? Codes of Ethics aren't JavaScript frameworks.

GrumpyYoungMan 10y ago
The National Society for Professional Engineers, which, among other things, is the body that runs the exams for licensing professional engineers in the United States, has a similar code of ethics: https://www.nspe.org/resources/ethics/code-ethics https://www.nspe.org/resources/ethics/code-ethics
- clifanatic 10y ago
  And a professional licensing infrastructure (hint hint)
glibgil 10y ago
Yes! If a person has taken an ethics course as part of a computer science degree, they would know this
- Bartweiss 10y ago
  How many computer science degrees include an ethics course? That's not a sarcastic question, I genuinely don't know. It seems to be less common than in other engineering disciplines, probably because the harm of misused civil or environmental engineering is so much more blatant. (And perhaps, because so much of professional software - like tracking ad networks - is rather grey morally.)
jraedisch 10y ago
Why shouldn't there be many codes along with lively discussion between supporters? And even if there was only one true "Code of Ethics" (which seems dangerous to me), there could still be different representations.
- Bartweiss 10y ago
  I think there's nothing wrong with multiple competing codes, just like there are many different open source licenses. But I am concerned that right now they're all crying in the wilderness - if two codes are pretty similar, it might be worth burying our disagreements over them until there's some kind of actual conversation or acceptance of any standard at all.
tomjen3 10y ago
There should be as many ethics codes as people feel the need to. Better that they commit honestly to a different code that we can count on them honoring their signature, than they half-hearthedly sign something they have no intention of accepting. Good, honest and decent people can disagree on what is morally right.

GrumpyYoungMan 10y ago

The National Society for Professional Engineers, which, among other things, is the body that runs the exams for licensing professional engineers in the United States, has a similar code of ethics: https://www.nspe.org/resources/ethics/code-ethics https://www.nspe.org/resources/ethics/code-ethics

clifanatic 10y ago
And a professional licensing infrastructure (hint hint)

glibgil 10y ago

Yes! If a person has taken an ethics course as part of a computer science degree, they would know this

Bartweiss 10y ago
How many computer science degrees include an ethics course? That's not a sarcastic question, I genuinely don't know. It seems to be less common than in other engineering disciplines, probably because the harm of misused civil or environmental engineering is so much more blatant. (And perhaps, because so much of professional software - like tracking ad networks - is rather grey morally.)

jraedisch 10y ago

Why shouldn't there be many codes along with lively discussion between supporters? And even if there was only one true "Code of Ethics" (which seems dangerous to me), there could still be different representations.

Bartweiss 10y ago
I think there's nothing wrong with multiple competing codes, just like there are many different open source licenses. But I am concerned that right now they're all crying in the wilderness - if two codes are pretty similar, it might be worth burying our disagreements over them until there's some kind of actual conversation or acceptance of any standard at all.

tomjen3 10y ago

There should be as many ethics codes as people feel the need to. Better that they commit honestly to a different code that we can count on them honoring their signature, than they half-hearthedly sign something they have no intention of accepting. Good, honest and decent people can disagree on what is morally right.