Person who writes computer software
Computer programmer
![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8c/Two_women_operating_ENIAC_%28full_resolution%29.jpg/220px-Two_women_operating_ENIAC_%28full_resolution%29.jpg) |
|
Names
| Computer Programmer
|
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Occupation type
| Profession
|
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Activity sectors
| Information technology
,
Software industry
|
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|
Competencies
| Writing and debugging computer code
|
---|
Education required
| Varies from apprenticeship to bachelor's degree, or self-taught
|
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A
programmer
,
computer programmer
or
coder
is an
author
of
computer
source code
? someone with skill in
computer programming
.
The
professional titles
software developer
and
software engineer
are used for
jobs
that require a programmer.
Generally, a programmer writes code in a
computer language
and with an intent to build
software
that achieves some
goal
.
Identification
Sometimes a programmer or
job position
is identified by the language used or target platform. For example,
assembly programmer
,
web developer
.
Job title
The job titles that include programming tasks have differing
connotations
across the computer industry and to different individuals. The following are
notable
descriptions.
A
software developer
primarily implements software based on
specifications
and fixes
bugs
. Other duties may include
reviewing code changes
and
testing
.
To achieve the required skills for the job, they might obtain a
computer science
or
associate
degree, attend a
programming boot camp
or be
self-taught
.
A
software engineer
usually is responsible for the same tasks as a developer
plus broader responsibilities of
software engineering
including architecting and designing new features and applications, targeting new platforms, managing the
software development lifecycle
(design, implementation, testing, and deployment), leading a team of programmers, communicating with customers, managers and other engineers, considering system stability and quality, and exploring software development methodologies.
Sometimes, a software engineer is required to have a degree in software engineering,
computer engineering
, or computer science. Some countries legally require an engineering degree to be called
engineer
.
[1]
[2]
[3]
History
Ada Lovelace
is considered by many to be the first computer programmer.
[4]
British
countess
and mathematician
Ada Lovelace
is often considered to be the first computer programmer.
She authored an
algorithm
, which was
published
in October 1842, for calculating
Bernoulli numbers
on the
Charles Babbage
analytical engine
.
[4]
Because the machine was not completed in her lifetime, she never experienced the algorithm in action.
In 1941, German
civil engineer
Konrad Zuse
was the first person to execute a program on a working, program-controlled, electronic computer.
[5]
From 1943 to 1945, per
computer scientist
Wolfgang K. Giloi and
AI
professor
Raul Rojas
et al., Zuse created the first,
high-level programming language
,
Plankalkul
.
[6]
[7]
Members of the 1945
ENIAC
programming team of
Kay McNulty
,
Betty Jennings
,
Betty Snyder
,
Marlyn Wescoff
,
Fran Bilas
and
Ruth Lichterman
have since been credited as the first professional computer programmers.
[8]
[9]
The software industry
The first company founded specifically to provide software products and services was the
Computer Usage Company
in 1955. Before that time, computers were programmed either by customers or the few commercial computer manufacturers of the time, such as
Sperry Rand
and
IBM
.
[10]
The
software industry
expanded in the early 1960s, almost immediately after computers were first sold in mass-produced quantities. Universities, governments, and businesses created a demand for software. Many of these programs were written in-house by full-time staff programmers; some were distributed between users of a particular machine for no charge, while others were sold on a commercial basis. Other firms, such as
Computer Sciences Corporation
(founded in 1959), also started to grow. Computer manufacturers soon started bundling
operating systems
,
system software
and
programming environments
with their machines; the
IBM 1620
came with the 1620 Symbolic Programming System and
FORTRAN
.
[11]
The industry expanded greatly with the rise of the
personal computer
(PC) in the mid-1970s, which brought computing to the average office worker. In the following years, the PC also helped create a constantly growing market for games, applications and utility software. This resulted in increased demand for software developers for that period of time.
[12]
Nature of the work
Computer programmers write, test,
debug
, and maintain the detailed instructions, called
computer programs
, that computers must follow to perform their functions. Programmers also conceive, design, and test logical structures for solving problems by computer. Many technical innovations in programming ? advanced computing technologies and sophisticated new languages and programming tools ? have redefined the role of a programmer and elevated much of the programming work done today. Job titles and descriptions may vary, depending on the organization.
[13]
Programmers work in many settings, including corporate
information technology
(IT) departments, big
software companies
, small service firms and government entities of all sizes. Many professional programmers also work for consulting companies at client sites as
contractors
.
Licensing
is not typically required to work as a programmer, although
professional certifications
are commonly held by programmers.
[13]
Programming is considered a
profession
.
[14]
[15]
[16]
Programmers' work varies widely depending on the type of business for which they are writing programs. For example, the instructions involved in updating financial records are very different from those required to duplicate conditions on an aircraft for
pilots training
in a
flight simulator
. Simple programs can be written in a few hours. More complex ones may require more than a year of work, while others are never considered 'complete' but rather are continuously improved as long as they stay in use. In most cases, several programmers work together as a team under a senior programmer's supervision.
[
citation needed
]
Types of software
Programming editors, also known as
source code editors
, are text editors that are specifically designed for programmers or developers to write the source code of an application or a program. Most of these editors include features useful for programmers, which may include color
syntax highlighting
, auto indentation,
auto-complete
, bracket matching,
syntax check
, and allows
plug-ins
. These features aid the users during coding,
debugging
and testing.
[17]
Globalization
Market changes in the UK
According to
BBC News
, 17% of computer science students could not find work in their field six months after graduation in 2009 which was the highest rate of the university subjects surveyed while 0% of medical students were unemployed in the same survey.
[18]
Market changes in the US
After the crash of the
dot-com bubble
(1999?2001) and the
Great Recession
(2008), many U.S. programmers were left without work or with lower wages.
[19]
[20]
In addition, enrollment in computer-related degrees and other STEM degrees (STEM attrition)
[21]
in the US has been dropping for years, especially for women,
[22]
which, according to Beaubouef and Mason,
[23]
could be attributed to a lack of general interest in science and mathematics and also out of an apparent fear that programming will be subject to the same pressures as manufacturing and agriculture careers. For programmers, the
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
(BLS) Occupational Outlook originally predicted a growth for programmers of 12 percent from 2010 to 2020
[24]
and thereafter a decline of -7 percent from 2016 to 2026, a further decline of -9 percent from 2019 to 2029, a decline of -10 percent from 2021 to 2031.
[13]
and then a decline of -11 percent from 2022 to 2032.
[25]
Since computer programming can be done from anywhere in the world, companies sometimes hire programmers in countries where wages are lower.
[13]
However, for software developers BLS projects for 2019 to 2029 a 22% increase in employment, from 1,469,200 to 1,785,200 jobs with a median base salary of $110,000 per year. This prediction is lower than the earlier 2010 to 2020 predicted increase of 30% for software developers.
[26]
[27]
[20]
Though the distinction is somewhat ambiguous, software developers engage in a wider array of aspects of application development and are generally higher skilled than programmers, making outsourcing less of a risk.
[28]
[29]
Another reason for the decline for programmers is their skills are being merged with other professions, such as developers, as employers increase the requirements for a position over time. Then there is the additional concern that recent advances in
artificial intelligence
might impact the demand for future generations of Software professions.
[30]
[31]
[32]
[33]
[34]
[35]
[36]
See also
References
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.
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.
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.
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a
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- ^
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.
coursera.org
. Coursera Inc. 30 September 2022.
Archived
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. Retrieved
2 February
2023
.
Computer programmers often take courses and seek certifications to enter the field and stay current in their skills in this ever-evolving profession.
- ^
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.
indeed.com
. Indeed. 17 October 2022.
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- ^
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.
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.
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.
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.
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Further reading
- Weinberg, Gerald M.
,
The Psychology of Computer Programming
, New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1971
- An experiential study of the nature of programming work:
Lucas, Rob (March?April 2010).
"Dreaming in Code"
.
New Left Review
(62): 125?132. Archived from
the original
on 24 April 2012.
- Thompson, Clive (2019).
Coders: The Making of a New Tribe and the Remaking of the World
. Penguin Press.
ISBN
978-0735220560
.
External links