[LINK] The Ethics (!) of Dodgy Web Designers

Craig Sanders cas at taz.net.au
Wed Apr 18 15:15:16 AEST 2007


On Wed, Apr 18, 2007 at 11:48:25AM +1000, Karl Auer wrote:
> On Wed, 2007-04-18 at 07:37 +1000, Rick Welykochy wrote:
> > It is called ACID. If you have never heard the term, or are not trained
> > in even the basics espounded by the brilliant writer Date, you should
> > not be let within striking distance of a database. It *IS* rocket
> > science in this case.
> [...]
> Now the self-righteous are thundering from the pulpit that "if you don't
> know what ACID is, you shouldn't be allowed near a database!".

well, that was an obvious exaggeration. the common attitude is really
"if you don't know then go and learn it - it's not hard, it's not
secret, all the information is freely available for those who need/care
to learn it. if you can't/won't do that THEN you shouldn't be let near a
database".

personally, i find a little elitism far less offensive than complacent
incompetence - "it's too hard to do properly so i'll just fake
it...those signing the pay-cheques won't notice anyway, because they
understand even less than me".

> Right now, perhaps, you need to know about ACID to write a good
> database application. But the tools will get better and eventually you
> won't. I wonder what the cries from the pulpit will be then?

no. that's bullshit(*). no matter how good the tools get, there will
ALWAYS be a need to understand what the tools are doing and how they are
doing it.

tools can only do so much...you still need talent and understanding to
make use of them.

the best word processor in the world can't turn Joe Sixpack into a
brilliant novelist - but a good writer could make very effective use of
good tools.

(*) specifically the same kind of bullshit behind Vannevar Bush's 1945
assertion that one day the only thing we'll need to know is how to push
a button. tools are not a substitute for human understanding, they're an
aid to it. computers can help you, but they can't do your thinking for
you.


craig

-- 
craig sanders <cas at taz.net.au>

But what can you do with it?
		-- ubiquitous cry from Linux-user partner



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