Code is Poetry
I am a computer programmer. I like coding. In the IT industry, coding is near the bottom of the professional ladder. If you want real money, you need to do high-level infosec work, become a Project Manager (i.e. a “suit”), or join a start-up. Some people think of “coding” as little more than typing into an IDE, but I think writing computer programs is a creative endeavor. You should take pride in the code you write. Good code is enjoyable to write and satisfying to reread. You look at it and think “This makes sense” or even “This is pretty clever,” and if it’s really good, “This is some fine-looking code!” Hopefully anyone else who reads it will think so too.
Bad code is hackwork, and you know it when you write it and you really know it when you read it. You can tell when you read code that someone either didn’t have the time or inclination to make beautiful.
Of course, in the real world the objective is to get things done, finish your project, make it work. The end users don’t care about “beautiful” code, and if your code works well, it’s likely that no one else will ever see it, unless you’re writing a library or something else intended for reuse. So of course many people never bother trying to write code as poetry; some probably think the idea is silly.
I want my code to be functional, but I also want it to be beautiful. I don’t yet have the 10+ years of experience that some people say are necessary to become a really good software engineer. But I think that coding, like any other form of writing, requires devotion to the craft to become good. Some people never devote themselves, others have enough natural talent that they start out writing good code. Most of us can never become Big Names in computer science, but we can at least write programs we are pleased with and which are useful to others. I think devotion to the craft requires enjoying it enough that you spend free time working on it, not just doing all your coding at work.
I am very interested in Richard Gabriel’s efforts to introduce a Master of Fine Arts in Software. I have flirted with the idea of going back to school for a Ph.D. in Computer Science, but if there were a program for a Doctorate of Fine Arts in Software, I’d definitely be interested in that.