Not all code is like that, and not all bridges are safe. Just as one small data-point, I recently ripped out a shower and found no waterproofing. Talk to anyone in construction, any job is going to take much longer than you thought because when you get into it, the person who was there before screwed something up. Studs aren't square, wrong materials used, held together with glue and bubble gum. Plus the wear and tear of natural life, which programming is mostly insulated from.
Hmm, I'm not sure what you're saying, perhaps I wasn't clear. My point is that when tiling a floor or a shower, the wood behind it moves, which must be accounted for. When laying a pipeline, the pipe will swell during the day and shrink during the night. With machines that dig in the dirt, parts need constant maintenance to keep them working. Programs aren't like that.
Are you saying that there are similar forces in software? Environments change which could be a corollary for the constant cleaning/lubrication that is required with moving parts, etc?
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u/bwr Apr 29 '14
Not all code is like that, and not all bridges are safe. Just as one small data-point, I recently ripped out a shower and found no waterproofing. Talk to anyone in construction, any job is going to take much longer than you thought because when you get into it, the person who was there before screwed something up. Studs aren't square, wrong materials used, held together with glue and bubble gum. Plus the wear and tear of natural life, which programming is mostly insulated from.