{"id":104,"date":"2012-10-05T08:44:02","date_gmt":"2012-10-05T08:44:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/endlesshybrids.com\/?p=104"},"modified":"2012-10-05T08:44:02","modified_gmt":"2012-10-05T08:44:02","slug":"software-development-the-middle-class-job","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/endlesshybrids.com\/education\/software-development-the-middle-class-job\/","title":{"rendered":"“Software development: the middle class job of the next generation”"},"content":{"rendered":"
I’ve never been entirely comfortable self identifying myself as a software developer. My degrees are in English and Library & Information Science. But I make a good living developing software. It’s rewarding, not just financially, but creatively as well. Indeed, it’s the creativity that keeps me developing with software.<\/p>\n
There are various degrees of software development & just as many skill levels. In a way, software development is like writing<\/em>. Anyone can do it with a bit of learning. But, like good writing, good software development takes a lot of practice and learning to do extremely well.<\/p>\n For most people software development is a mystery filled with odd incantations performed by pudgy bearded men in dark rooms.<\/p>\n The more we understand about software the more we grasp the limitations and possibilities of technology. After all, technology simply does what it’s programmed to do. There’s no real mystery behind these logical machines.<\/p>\n Unlike the 1980s when I attended college it’s now cool to aspire to a career in software development or entrepreneurship. \u00a0I’m still not sure if those skills should be emphasized in college curriculums. Analytical and critical thinking are the most important skills that anyone can learn in formal education. Obviously with the right teachers those skills can be incorporated into computer science coursework. Technology changes so fast that anyone wanting to achieve proficiency in software development must have the ability to learn on one’s own.<\/p>\n