Or it's like Mask ROM, but you can edit it... sometimes. Oh and it can self-replicate, like software. But the replicates can form 3D structures, so not exactly

Or it's like Mask ROM, but you can edit it... sometimes. Oh and it can self-replicate, like software. But the replicates can form 3D structures, so not exactly like software. And they can be physically moved. The software/hardware paradigms don't fit exactly. They are useful is certain situations. The most useful of these is that DNA can be described as a linear sequence of a discrete set of symbols (to a first approximation).