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A dentist friend once asked me why is software development so difficult and cost so much. I told him that's because a competent developer has to become an expe
by ww520 16y ago
A dentist friend once asked me why is software development so difficult and cost so much. I told him that's because a competent developer has to become an expert in the domain of the application in addition being an expert in programming. It's like learning a new field every time you develop a new application.
- vog 16y agoThis is so true. Often, people try to circumvent that problem by providing complete specs upfront. But those are doomed if they lack the old problem, i.e. if they were written by people who are missing expertise in either programming or in the domain. Another way to circumvent the problem is to establish a good communication flow between the domain experts and the software developers. However, that only works when this intense communication eventually makes at least one programmer a domain expert. So that strategy is more a way to reach this state rather than to circumvent it. Whenever a software project works really well, there'll bee another interesting phenomenon: The developers acquire a deeper, more abstract knowledge about the work practices than the workers themselves.