There was nothing remotely close to the Python infrastructure we have now, complete with fairly advanced software constructs in fairly accessible manner. Also

There was nothing remotely close to the Python infrastructure we have now, complete with fairly advanced software constructs in fairly accessible manner. Also keep in mind that there are other engineering disciplines than software. In those disciplines, the key is becoming an expert user in a a very high level tool, such as LT Spice, Solidworks, various FEA packages, etc., and even higher level more specialized tools. There, to design something, there is no time to fiddle with actual coding, unless you’re a graduate student actually writing a new tool.