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Explaining Complexity in Software Development?
BMazurek asks: "I'm stumped by how to explain software development complexity (not theoretical big-O notation, that's easy) to non-developers. When it comes to people who aren't in the code, my explanations fall flat. It's not that the people I'm talking to are stupid, they're quite honestly people at the top of their respective (non-tech) fields. How do -you- explain software development complexity to non-developers? What analogies do you use?"
"I often try the famous Fred Brooks, Jr. quote (seldom to much success):
'Software entities are more complex for their size than perhaps any other human construct because no two parts are alike (at least above the statement level). If they are, we make the two similar parts into a subroutine--open or closed. In this respect, software systems differ profoundly from computers, buildings, or automobiles, where repeated elements abound.'
The mind boggles... you make a sensible and sincere compliment, in which is also hidden a secret double-meaning, and at the same time you make claims of having a girlfriend. I'm impressed at your literary prowess! ;-)
the layman's guide to computer science
Heck, we can't even clearly explain to peer programmers why vi is better than emacs
Well, you can't because they're not the same thing: vi is a text editor, emacs is an operating system.
"A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of" - Ogden Nash
i used to teach english to native japanese speakers, and that's really not any different from trying to explain bayseian spam filters to my non-technical boss.
Here's a challenge: try to explain bayesian filters to a non-technical native japanese speaking boss.
"A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of" - Ogden Nash
Easiest way I've found- though it's begining to get a bit outdated thanks to bloatware. Charles Dicken's famous novel is about 100k.
You're way behind my friend: data bloat has grown so much these days it isn't measured in Charles Dickens units anymore, it's measured in tax code units:
- 1 tax code = 25MB
- 1 tax code table of content = 300KB (to measure smaller data units)
And no, I'm not kidding, the complete internal revenue code really is that big.
"A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of" - Ogden Nash
Please, whatever you do, no more software-car analogies!!!!
emacs would make a *great* operating system, if only it came with a decent text editor.
(I'm sure you've all heard that one before)