4 ms·

Whoever wrote this hit the enterprise koolaid a bit too much, you're meant to sip not swallow. Calling SWE "working in IT" is where it lost me.

eddsh1994 4y ago
The majority of software developers are working on what is, essentially, IT both literally and in the business sense of the word.
- t8sr 4y ago
  And the majority of doctors, nurses and lab technicians work in hospitals, yet they don't all have the same job. IT the job is nowadays mostly understood to be about installing printers and setting up computers. Software Engineer/Developer/Programmer builds software. Sysadmins manage servers. SREs develop and operate production infrastructure. Nobody knows what DevOps is. Outside of Germany and its neighbors, nobody thinks these four jobs are the same job.
kennyloginz 4y ago
Honestly curious why you consider SWE not “working in IT”
- thablackbull 4y ago
  Because he doesn't want the negative connotation that comes with it. Just like the debate about, "is it engineering"; by calling oneself as opposed to 'programmer', it conveys more prestige. As a SWE, he sees himself in the driver seat of the company and doesn't want to be associated with being 'back-end', 'a cost-center', etc.
  - t8sr 4y ago
    20 years later I still cringe a bit at the term "software engineer", but that's a different debate. Given how much work nowadays is about technology, calling 30% of the working population "IT guys" is perhaps not super specific anymore, so language evolved. Nowadays, "IT" anywhere outside of Europe refers to basically an operational or support role. (I think Europe being the odd one out is an effect of most European business leaders still thinking computers are a fad that'll go away eventually.)
naavis 4y ago
The dictionary definition of information technology (IT) almost exactly describes software engineering. So what is wrong with calling it "working in IT"? For reference, Merriam-Webster defines IT as follows: > the technology involving the development, maintenance, and use of computer systems, software, and networks for the processing and distribution of data
- t8sr 4y ago
  I think the confusion is "IT" the sector and IT the job. Yes, computers are information technology, but saying SWEs work in IT is kind of like saying a pharmacist "works in medicine". Being "in IT" typically means you set up office computers.
  - naavis 4y ago
    > saying a pharmacist "works in medicine" Is this wrong? I mean, they do work in medicine. You can always be more specific if you want, but I don't see anything wrong with that statement. > Being "in IT" typically means you set up office computers. This is probably a thing that varies regionally. Here it is very common to call all the aforementioned jobs "the IT industry".
- dinkumthinkum 4y ago
  You’re using MW definitions for industry specific meanings?
yodsanklai 4y ago
(foreign speaker, genuinely curious) How would you phrase it? working in ...?
- dieselgate 4y ago
  Not sure what your native language is (for Spanish speakers "working on", "working in", "working at" could be a reasonable distinctions) but think the punchline is that it's software "development" or "engineering" and not simply "IT". Although some may argue they all fall under the same general label as being IT (i'm not opinionated)

eddsh1994 4y ago

The majority of software developers are working on what is, essentially, IT both literally and in the business sense of the word.

t8sr 4y ago
And the majority of doctors, nurses and lab technicians work in hospitals, yet they don't all have the same job. IT the job is nowadays mostly understood to be about installing printers and setting up computers. Software Engineer/Developer/Programmer builds software. Sysadmins manage servers. SREs develop and operate production infrastructure. Nobody knows what DevOps is. Outside of Germany and its neighbors, nobody thinks these four jobs are the same job.

kennyloginz 4y ago

Honestly curious why you consider SWE not “working in IT”

thablackbull 4y ago
Because he doesn't want the negative connotation that comes with it. Just like the debate about, "is it engineering"; by calling oneself as opposed to 'programmer', it conveys more prestige. As a SWE, he sees himself in the driver seat of the company and doesn't want to be associated with being 'back-end', 'a cost-center', etc.
- t8sr 4y ago
  20 years later I still cringe a bit at the term "software engineer", but that's a different debate. Given how much work nowadays is about technology, calling 30% of the working population "IT guys" is perhaps not super specific anymore, so language evolved. Nowadays, "IT" anywhere outside of Europe refers to basically an operational or support role. (I think Europe being the odd one out is an effect of most European business leaders still thinking computers are a fad that'll go away eventually.)

naavis 4y ago

The dictionary definition of information technology (IT) almost exactly describes software engineering. So what is wrong with calling it "working in IT"? For reference, Merriam-Webster defines IT as follows: > the technology involving the development, maintenance, and use of computer systems, software, and networks for the processing and distribution of data

t8sr 4y ago
I think the confusion is "IT" the sector and IT the job. Yes, computers are information technology, but saying SWEs work in IT is kind of like saying a pharmacist "works in medicine". Being "in IT" typically means you set up office computers.
- naavis 4y ago
  > saying a pharmacist "works in medicine" Is this wrong? I mean, they do work in medicine. You can always be more specific if you want, but I don't see anything wrong with that statement. > Being "in IT" typically means you set up office computers. This is probably a thing that varies regionally. Here it is very common to call all the aforementioned jobs "the IT industry".
dinkumthinkum 4y ago
You’re using MW definitions for industry specific meanings?

yodsanklai 4y ago

(foreign speaker, genuinely curious) How would you phrase it? working in ...?

dieselgate 4y ago
Not sure what your native language is (for Spanish speakers "working on", "working in", "working at" could be a reasonable distinctions) but think the punchline is that it's software "development" or "engineering" and not simply "IT". Although some may argue they all fall under the same general label as being IT (i'm not opinionated)