> The job of the software engineer is perhaps less about building the perfect “snap fit” (although it is at least a bit about that), and more about selecting fr

> The job of the software engineer is perhaps less about building the perfect “snap fit” (although it is at least a bit about that), and more about selecting from the vast array of “snap fits” that exist, and matching them to the specific problem. Except, that's exactly what a whole book on manufacturing snap fits is about. Physical engineering is nothing but tradeoffs and 'it-depends' and that's why you end up with reference manuals on things like snap fits, where the point is twofold: an encyclopedia of the range of possible snap fits and how they can each be used; and some theory to help figure out the appropriate tradeoff.