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Comment by limit499karma | Hacker News Reader

> how to organize software so that the complexity remains manageable as the size increases

So John is missing the role of software architect here. Science, art, and development - 3 roles. Not all visits to the stratosphere are misadventures.

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I think TFA is implying that good SWEs are good architects too, the skills go hand in hand.

I frankly don't believe in the "software architect" as a separate role. I've worked with "architects" who are clearly just BS artists because they know the jargon but have no skill to back it up and make difficult technical decisions regarding tradeoffs.

How do you propose those "BS artists" feed their families in an alternate reality tech industry where only the roles that add value are deemed worthy of food and shelter coupons?

A good first step would be let them keep their jobs, but strip them of any authority. This already happens at some companies - the architects provide guidance which dev teams are not required to follow.

I think it's absolutely insane that we live in a world where many people with an "architect" title don't write code, and sometimes have never written code in their life! That would be like a world full of chess coaches who don't play chess! They just read BS articles like "Skewers are the new forks" or whatever.

It’s funny, the most effective “architects” only have “developer” in their title.

The ones with “architect” in the title move on to the next project as soon as the previous is started…

Good SWE can do all 3. The three distinct skill sets are orthogonal to individuals' skills.

Yet, some visits to the stratosphere are misadventures.

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