
For the good of software, software must die - joshrule
http://alarmingdevelopment.org/?p=555
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Travis
While potentially true, this article has many flaws that seriously weaken it's
points.

FTA, "software reproduces without cost and never wears out. This is unique in
human history, and we have not yet come to terms with its downside."

One straightforward example of something that is a lot like software, in many
ways, is literature. It is said that every author since the 17th century has
had to kill off the ghost of Shakespeare. Even before that: "Paradise Lost"
begins with several pages describing how it's better than the Greek and Roman
epics.

In effect, every author of serious intentions has to grapple with their
predecessors. Some of the truly great works have explicitly (through content
or structure or character) had to kill off the Bard.

Heck, one of my favorite plays is, "Rosencranz and Guildenstern are dead,"
which very clearly is killing off Shakespeare's characters.

Not to say there isn't some truth in the article, but that the author seems to
mistakenly believe that software is totally different than anything else
humanity has dealt with before. It's not completely true.

