[jkepler]

> * Software needs maintenance. You can't just build an app an call it a day, you need to employ a team to maintain it continuously. You can build a massive, gargantuan bridge and maintain it maybe every few years/half a decade to keep it safe for 30+ years, you cannot do that in software.

> * Unlike what outsider think, software -- even "boring" CRUD/web software -- is still very much a research project. If you ask a civil engineer how to build a bridge, they'll tell you about all the techniques that were developed over the many many decades.

As a nonpracticing civil engineer, you're underestimating the ongoing maintence that goes into any large bridge.

Also, though the techniques may be more established, every bridge must still be designed to fit the specific characteristics of its local geology and geography. But come to think of it, fundamental computer science algorithms are pretty well established, like bridge-building techniques. Software engineering is simply fitting the code to each unique problem, as bridge design fits a bridge to each unique place.

[dcow]

The dirty secret is that you rarely need to invest in new, novel, software engineering techniques which is what you need actual software engineers for. In reality you can just get a few software developers to propose a design for a thing, have a software engineer consultant review the design and sign off, and then go on your merry way building the software. Kinda like how architecture/construction vs engineering works in meat space.