It's a self-perpetuating issue: people build stuff saying "it won't/can't last 30 years" for various reasons (money, time, skill, resources, expectations, company culture, business landscape etc). So then software doesn't last 30 years for those same various reasons.
The idea that we think systems did used to last longer is probably some survivor bias. However, software that has survived decades was probably created with a completely different set of methodologies, resources and incentives to modern software.
We swap JS frameworks constantly, but when we’ll reach a good paradigm, we’ll stick with it. At one point, React might be the final framework, or rather, one of its descendants.
Develop a good vm that can either be part of the browser or can be easily launched from it and get all of the browser/OS makers on the same page.
We only have what we have because of a lack of real leadership.
When the c++11 abi break happened it was a big pain in the ass, but once MSVC decided in 2015 that they were going to stop breaking ABI I think it was the stability that c++ needed to fossilize…
Spoken as a C++ fan.
Writing bad code to just get past the next sprint or release is madness.
I'm writing software with the assumption that it'll be used for at least 30 years there, with a lot of guard rails and transparency/observability mechanisms, because I know the next person working there will thank me.
I am aware that capitalism essentially dictates externalising cost as much as possible, but with software- much for the same reason capitalism loves it (a copy is cheap and can be sold at full price despite being constructed just once) means that these externalities can scale exponentially.
Teams in particular is an outlier as in most cases it is essentially forced on people.
It doesn't dictate externalising cost as much as possible unless you have a very short-term view.
Short-term view businesses get eaten pretty quickly in a free capitalist system.
People forget that half of capitalism's advantage is the "creative destruction" part - if businesses are allowed to fail, capitalism works well and creates net value.