pfarrell;290781 Wrote: 
> darrenyeats wrote:[color=green]
> > Who would trust software to keep planes in the air? 
> 
> You do know that it was decades before the commercial folks accepted
> the 
> idea. 
> 
So what? It was a while before they adopted jet engines too I would
imagine. There's nothing wrong with taking time to evaluate new
technologies.

> 
> But comp.risks has many articles about teething problems on Airbus 
> computer systems.
> 
And I can find plenty of reports of problems with early suspension
bridges, early cars, early planes, early spacecraft, etc etc. Software
is not special in that regard. When you develop something new it won't
be as reliable as it will be in 50 years time. There will be "teething
problems".

> 
> Actually, life support systems software is 
> way special.
> 
Yes and no. It's still software, and it's still written by developers.
Sure things are done differently and to different standards than your
typical word processor, but the electronics in the ECG box are
engineered differently than those in my TV too...again nothing
different here.

> 
> Fey, Engineers (PEs) who use computers are Engineers, not computer 
> people. They are 'computer users'. Their domain knowledge is 
> engineering, not computers.
> 
Sure engineers who use computers are engineers. Engineers who build
computers are also engineers, and engineers who write software are
engineers. 

I have to say that until today I didn't know anything about the whole
PE thing, being British. But according to this page
(http://www.engology.com/engpg2faq.htm) (and several others I found) PE
is the same as Chartered Engineer. And I can certainly become a
Chartered Engineer as a programmer
(http://www.bcs.org/server.php?show=conWebDoc.1075). What is also
interesting is that the NSPE accept memberships from people with
equivalent international memberships...so I wonder what would happen if
a CEng who happened to be a software guy showed up :)  Anyway, looks
like it'll all be moot soon as the NSPE are talking about licensing
software devs
(http://www.nspe.org/PEmagazine/pe_1207_Software_License.html).


-- 
radish
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