Ask HN: Is there a relation between Software and Art?
Building architecture is sometimes considered a breed between art and science. Is there evidence or research that suggests software follows suit?
Beautiful Code [2] is a well-known book that attempts to examine the development of some successful software projects from the perspective of the lead developers, and how they came to design decisions.
Beautiful Architecture [3] is a similar book focusing on large-scale project design.
I have admired software, but art is not simply that which is admired. I have admired tools, and have been happy with them even while they sit beside me, unused.
I may write this comment without expecting it to be admired for its luster. I may write a lyric poem with quite different hopes. It is hard to say just what art is, but I imagine many would agree that writing may or may not be an artistic practice. The same goes for pencilwork; I could be tallying in a margin or sketching a scene. It all depends on how one goes about it, and what one makes—and to what purpose it is made.
As with art, almost all software is forgettable, most of it is a poor copy of something already done well long ago, and the best it can hope for in future is to take up a few minutes of an archivist's life. Still, it may have been worth making.