I often see these as well. I would even go so far as to say these problems are the rule rather than the exception. Why is software development still so high ris

I often see these as well. I would even go so far as to say these problems are the rule rather than the exception. Why is software development still so high risk? I don't know the answer but it seems to me that software development is much too bespoke. Take a relatively simple case of web store front development. What if the development company said, OK, for your store you can have option A or option B. Period. The developer doesn't gather requirements at all, and all the tools and libraries are known and have been used before. The customer gets to pick a few options like when you buy a car (e.g., say some look&feel options). This is a low risk, predictable, "there's only one way to do it" approach. I'd like to see software development become vastly more predictable and stable. This will bore some developers who always want to try the latest framework and technology, but novelty adds risk.