
Is it time to ditch the term “full-stack”? - dandraper
https://engine.expert360.com/the-curly-thing-about-full-stack-ef3e32cbde6a
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gwbas1c
Yes, please!

When I see full stack in job descriptions, it implies that management doesn't
really know how to invest in order to develop the product that they're trying
to develop. Looking for a full stack engineer, really means that the
management is looking for a superhero who can magically solve all their
problems.

A full stack developer makes sense for a very small web application that
doesn't really do much, or as an overall architect when the plans include
scaling a team to meet the diverse roles needed any more complicated
application.

The thing is that, any application of sufficient complexity to solve a
tangible need, has problems and details that are beyond the scope of what one
engineer can do. Ultimately, modern economics comes from specialization, and
that means that successful development requires team members to specialize in
the various components of a complicated web application.

If an application can really be built by a full stack engineer, at this point
is it truly unique enough compared to what's already on the market? Perhaps?
If the founders are able to determine that such a market exists for such a
simple application, then they are probably smart enough to write the
application themselves!

~~~
gwbas1c
But to add: Many of the "full stack" engineers on this site can probably write
a clone of the early Craigslist or Facebook as a solo developer. They could
even administer it through early growth. How many business are left that are
that simple?

Back then, websites scaled more slowly, there were no mobile clients, and
simple UI was fine. We could cut corners by mixing php, html, and SQL into a
single file; but if you do that today you won't go much further than a
hackathon.

Now you need a web site, API, mobile apps on both Android and iPhone, and
maybe a desktop app. Tolerance of bugs is lower, so developers need to spend
more time writing automated tests. The "web site" might be a mix of an in-
house app, crm, blog, Facebook page, ect. No "full stack" developer can do all
that in any reasonable time.

