The Coming Software Apocalypse
Article

The Coming Software Apocalypse

A small group of programmers wants to change how we code – before catastrophe strikes.

James Somers
The Atlantic, 2017

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Editorial Rating

8

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Recommendation

Almost every aspect of modern life depends on flawless software, but several catastrophic code failures in various industries, including car controls and emergency response systems, have exposed a dated and error-prone development process. In this expansive piece for The Atlantic, writer and programmer James Somers explores the potential for even worse bug-induced disasters and explains how one group of technical leaders is trying to change how developers build software. getAbstract recommends this eye-opener to everyone, but prescribes it especially to programmers.

Summary

Over the past several decades, software has become a silent but ubiquitous companion to every human endeavor. From automobile controls to emergency response networks, code is hard at work behind the scenes of nearly every human endeavor. But while computer hardware has become more compact and powerful over the years, the software that drives it has grown increasingly complex and difficult to manage. As a result, there are now millions of ways for a given piece of code to fail, and some of those failures can be catastrophic. Recent examples abound, ...

About the Author

James Somers is a writer, programmer and frequent tech contributor to The Atlantic.

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