billwolf%hazel.cs.clemson.edu@hubcap.clemson.edu (William Thomas Wolfe, 2847 ) (09/30/89)
From ted@nmsu.edu (Ted Dunning): > [playing as a means of "education"] > i would hope that the `software engineering philosophy' does not > preclude self-education. Of course not. The point is that engineering and "playing" are two entirely different processes. To learn about a new tool, one first studies the tool's capabilities and then uses the tool in some engineering endeavor (or, alternatively, a formal training exercise which someone has designed). A tool is not, and should not be viewed as, an entertainment mechanism. The engineer's psychic rewards come from having engineered a superb product, on time and under budget. These are tied to the objectives, and not to the means of getting there. Bill Wolfe, wtwolfe@hubcap.clemson.edu
ted@nmsu.edu (Ted Dunning) (10/01/89)
In article <6638@hubcap.clemson.edu> billwolf%hazel.cs.clemson.edu@hubcap.clemson.edu (William Thomas Wolfe, 2847 ) writes: From ted@nmsu.edu (Ted Dunning): > [playing as a means of "education"] > i would hope that the `software engineering philosophy' does not > preclude self-education. Of course not. The point is that engineering and "playing" are two entirely different processes. To learn about a new tool, one first studies the tool's capabilities and then uses the tool in some engineering endeavor (or, alternatively, a formal training exercise which someone has designed). A tool is not, and should not be viewed as, an entertainment mechanism. engineering and playing are indeed two different processes, but education and play need not be. of course, there is ample cause for bill's confusion, collin's dictionary of common english lists 54 separate senses of the word play. as usual, bill takes as appropriate only the first, to amuse oneself as a child does. consider though the sense used in the phrase sword-play. what is the purpose of this activity but to sharpen one's skills with instruments of distinctly un-toylike nature. this is much more in keeping with the sense that i had in mind. essentially undirected exercise in the use of a new tool is a valuable part of the learning process. it is important to get hands on experience before you commit yourself to the use of a such a tool in a possibly critical application. The engineer's psychic rewards come from having engineered a superb product, on time and under budget. These are tied to the objectives, and not to the means of getting there. hmmmm.... and i had hoped that a more integrated viewpoint was beginning to make itself felt in engineering; a viewpoint in which words like beauty and elegance were allowed to have meaning and recognized to be relevant to the entire design process. certainly we cannot in good conscience sentence engineers to a lifetime of no reward except the service and satisfaction of other peoples requirements. rather we should allow that there are distinct satisfactions in creation and superb execution separate and apart completing a project. please, bill, can't we just attribute your comments to rhetorical excess? -- ted@nmsu.edu remember, when extensions and subsets are outlawed, only outlaws will have extensions or subsets