Software engineering

Software engineering (SE) is the profession that creates and maintains software applications by applying technologies and practices from computer science, project management, engineering, application domains, and other fields. - My to As  - Ath to Bar  - Bar to Big Software is the set of instructions that enables computer hardware to perform useful work. In the last decades of the twentieth century, software has become a ubiquitous component of the devices used by industrialized societies. - Big to Bra  - Bra to Cap  - Cat to Vei Software engineering, like traditional engineering disciplines, deals with issues of cost and reliability. Some software applications contain millions of lines of code that are expected to perform properly in the face of changing conditions, making them comparable in complexity to the most complex modern machines. (The Boeing 777-200 has about 132,500 engineered and unique parts. Including rivets, bolts and other fasteners, the airplane has more than 3 million parts. Included is approximately 1400 data processing units and 5 million lines of code.) - Cei to Chr  - Chr to Cow  - Cow to Dan As of 2002, the U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 675,000 computer software engineers holding jobs in the U.S., and there are estimated to be about one-and-a-half million practitioners in the E.U., Asia, and elsewhere; these figures are about 60% of the number of practitioners engaged in traditional engineering. SE pioneers include Barry Boehm, Fred Brooks, C. A. R. Hoare, and David Parnas. There is extensive debate about what SE is, who qualifies as a SE, who sets the standards, etc. - Dan to Dig  - Don to Era  - Dra to Mma See also List of software engineering topics (thematic) and List of software engineering topics (alphabetical). - Ema to Van  - Fan to For  - For to Fun Terminology Origins The term software engineering was used occasionally in the late 1950s and early 1960s, though some argue that software engineering was coined by F.L. Bauer. It was popularized by the 1968 NATO Software Engineering Conference held in Garmisch, Germany, and has been in widespread use since. - Fun to Goo  - Got to Hal  - Hal to Hor Meanings The term software engineering is commonly used with a variety of distinct meanings: - Hos to Po;  - Irs to Jes  - Jes to Kar As the usual contemporary term for the broad range of activities that was formerly called programming and systems analysis; As the broad term for all aspects of the practice of computer programming, as opposed to the theory of computer programming, which is called computer science; As the term embodying the advocacy of a specific approach to computer programming, one that urges that it be treated as an engineering profession rather than an art or a craft, and advocates the codification of recommended practices in the form of software engineering methodologies. Software engineering is "(1) the application of a systematic, disciplined, quantifiable approach to the development, operation, and maintenance of software, that is, the application of engineering to software," and "(2) the study of approaches as in (1)." – IEEE Standard 610.12 - Kaw to Kry  - Kyl to Loy  - Leg to Mer Software engineering is practiced by software engineers. Debate over who is a software engineer Some people believe that software development is a more appropriate term than software engineering for the process of creating software. People like Pete McBreen (author of "Software Craftsmanship: The New Imperative" (ISBN: 0-201-73386-2)) believe that the term Software Engineering implies levels of rigor and proven processes that are not appropriate for all types of software development. Breen goes on to make a strong case for craftsmanship as a more appropriate metaphor because it focuses on the skills of the developer as the key to success instead of the "manufacturing" process. - Mer to Mon  - Org to Nic  - Nif to Par Some people dispute the notion that the field is mature enough to warrant the title "engineering". In each of the last few decades, at least one radical new approach has entered the mainstream of software development (e.g. Structured Programming, Object Orientation, Agile Development), implying that the field is still changing too rapidly to be considered an engineering discipline. Other people would argue that the supposedly radical new approaches are actually evolutionary rather than revolutionary, the mere introduction of new tools rather than fundamental changes. - Par to Pie  - Pig to Poc  - Poe to Ps; There are currently no widely accepted criteria for distinguishing someone who is a software engineer from someone who is not a software engineer. In addition, the industry is in the midst of a complex debate on the licensing of practicing software engineers. - Ps2 to Rat  - Rac to Rid  - Ri; to Sam Levels For the localities that do not license software engineers, some hiring classifications are made based on education and experience. Classification levels may include: entry-level, mid-level, and senior. - San to Sci  - Sio to Sev  - Ses to She Typical entry-level software engineers have a bachelor's degree and zero to five years of experience. Typical mid-level software engineers have a bachelor's or master's degree and have five to ten years of experience. Typical senior-level software engineers have an advanced degree and have ten or more years of experience. Note that these are only guidelines that are trends seen in hiring practices and that many exceptions exist. - She to Smu  - Nak to Qua  - Squ to Swe Software engineering today Software engineering affects economies and societies in many ways. - Swi to Tec  - Tar to Tim  - Tim to Tra Economic In the U.S., software drove about 1/4 of all increase in GDP during the 1990s (about $90 billion per year), and 1/6 of all productivity growth (efficiency within GDP) during the late 1990s (about $33 billion per year). Software engineering drove $1 trillion of economic and productivity growth over the last decade. Around the world, software drives economic growth in similar ways, though reliable statistics are hard to find. - Tre to Val  - Vam to Wav  - Wea to Wra Social Software engineering changes world culture, wherever people use computers. Email, the world-wide web, and instant messaging enable people to interact in new ways. Software lowers the cost and improves the quality of health-care, fire departments, and other important social services. - Wre to Yug  - Tun to Successful projects where software engineering methods have been applied include Linux, the space shuttle software, and automated teller machines. See also software engineering economics. Room for improvement In spite of the enormous economic growth and productivity gains enabled by software, persistent complaints about the quality remain. Deficient software engineering is often blamed for project failures when the blame might more properly be placed with business managers who ignore lessons already learned by Software Engineers. See also Debates within software engineering and Criticism of software engineering Technologies and practices What is the best way to make more and better software? SEs advocate many different technologies and practices, with much disagreement. This debate has gone on for 60 years and may continue forever. Software engineers use a wide variety of technologies and practices. Practitioners use a wide variety of technologies: compilers, code repositories, to word processors. Practitioners use a wide variety of practices to carry out and coordinate their efforts: pair programming, code reviews, daily stand up meetings. Education People from many different educational backgrounds make important contributions to SE. The fraction of practitioners who earn computer science or software engineering degrees has been slowly rising. Today, about 1/2 of all software engineers earn computer science or software engineering degrees. For comparison, about 3/4 of all traditional engineers earn engineering degrees. Software degrees About half of all practitioners today have computer science degrees, which are the most relevant degrees that are widely available. A small, but growing, number of practitioners have software engineering degrees. As of 2004, in the U.S., about 2,000 universities offer computer science degrees and about 50 universities offer software engineering degrees. Most SE practitioners will earn computer science degrees for decades to come, though someday this may change. Domain degrees Some practitioners have degrees in application domains, bringing important domain knowledge and experience to projects. In MIS, some practitioners have business degrees. In embedded systems, some practitioners have electrical or computer engineering degrees, because embedded software often requires a detailed understanding of hardware. In medical software, some practitioners have medical informatics, general medical, or biology degrees. Other degrees Some practitioners have mathematics, science, engineering, or other technical degrees. Some have philosophy, or other non-technical degrees. And, some have no degrees. Note that Barry Boehm earned degrees in mathematics and Edsger Dijkstra earned degrees in physics. Graduate Graduate computer science degrees have been available from hundreds of universities for several decades. Graduate software engineering degrees have been available from dozens of universities for a decade or so.

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