Things I Learned About Software - In and Out of College

Here’s my few thoughts on the “Three Things I Learned About Software” meme that’s going around. As prerequisites, read Dare and Scott who seem to have started this all.

Three Things I Learned About Software in College:

1. It all boils down to the same old data types.
2. Business problems are not solved by programming languages.
3. Occasionally the code you pull out of your ass at 2AM will be just the thing you need to finish a project. Occasionally it won’t.

Three Things I Learned About Software WHILE NOT in College:

1. Just because someone says they have business knowledge and their title is Business Analyst, they may or may not have any knowledge of the business problem the software is attempting to solve.
2. That code you write as a quick/dirty interim solution will always be in use for a longer period of time than intended.
3. Everyone thinks their code or situation is new, unique, different, and doesn’t need to follow established patterns and practices. In reality, it probably isn’t special at all.