Re^3: We are the logisticians of information

[tilly]

in reply to Re^2: We are the logisticians of information
in thread Programming is combat

If someone handed you truly solid, unambiguous requirements, that cover all cases then you've been handed your final program, only written in the wrong language. If anyone could guarantee a source of requirements like that, then we could just write a good compiler and get rid of the programmer.

Shifting and ambiguous requirements are not just an annoying part of your job, they are why you have a job.

[dragonchild]

This is a straw man. Requirements are the "what". Design is the "how". If I was handed a complete design, of course a compiler could translate that into a program a computer could understand. But, translating requirements into an appopriate design is the job of the programmer, at least in my experience. The actual typing is a side effect of the job.

I look at it as an artform. Some people work in paint or food. I work in programming languages. The requirements could be "I want a picture of the Pieta." The design is the artistic layout - "The Virgin is on the left, the Christ-child on the right." The compiler is "Sculpt it in marble" or "Sculpt it in papaya". :-)