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by paulddraper 859 days ago
> their original intent was to prevent shoddy workmanship from creating hazardous conditions

And therein lies the difference...a building collapsing will kill its tenants. Software collapsing will make someone late for dinner.

When software is critical, there are safety standards: DO-178C, DO-330, ISO 13485, ISO 14971, etc.
1 comments
0xbadcafebee 851 days ago
Software has significant effects on people that isn't immediately apparent to the designers.

I'm sure that the contractors who designed accounting software for the UK Post Office didn't expect to ruin the lives of hundreds of people. https://www.bbc.com/news/business-56718036

I'm sure the designers of Facebook didn't mean to inspire a mental health crisis for young people. https://www.sciencenews.org/article/social-media-teens-menta...

I'm sure the designers of GPS software didn't mean for hundreds of people to drive into lakes while blindly following the GPS. https://duckduckgo.com/?t=ftsa&q=google+maps+errors+lead+to+...

I'm sure the designers of predictive policing software didn't mean to racially discriminate. https://www.technologyreview.com/2020/07/17/1005396/predicti... Same for facial recognition software. https://jolt.law.harvard.edu/digest/why-racial-bias-is-preva...

The longer that we continue to be flippant about the impact of software on the lives of people, the longer people will suffer due to our laziness and unprofessionalism.

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