The scientific art Build 0004

This is trapdoor.org - a site for open source software, and resources about professional (be that free or non-free) development. Among our projects are

What is trapdoor.org about?

The software industry suffers from a shamefull abundance of mediocrity. The prevalence of poorly engineered software appalls me. It seems that users are expected to accept as reasonable, bugs and limitations which they would never be expected to accept from any other area of engineering.

This site exists partly as a host for numerous projects - some open-source, some not. It also exists as a place to collect and publish ideas about the state of the industry, and specific over-hyped technologies. I'd like to think of it as a reality-check for the software industry.

The commercial expectations of software

With engineering in general, as a customer you could reasonably expect:

But from software, you can expect that joyful combination of unpredictable behaviour, regular crashes, security issues, and a hefty price tag - often disproportional to your use of the software.

There is no need for this. Software needs careful engineering just like any other product - it's no use promising the impossible - but robust, elegant software can be created at a reasonable price. Aiming for an unrealistically low price will all too often lead to spiraling costs in the long run.

The ethical expectations

Code is the one scientific art, or at least it should be. Unfortunately, computer science degrees are given away like sweets, and there are all too many VB-born-and-bred, algorithm-poor `developers' out there.

Microsoft is a wonderful example of capitalism in action. It is unfortunate that in the process of achieving such success, there has never been a commercial need to make their software work. They have borrowed and bullied their way to commercial success, despite the existence of better, and cheaper, alternatives.

Linux is a superb example of what can be achieved by driven individuals, working together. The open source movement as a whole proves to me how worthless the vast majority of commercial software really is.

What this site is about

This site is about developing good software. It is a site for developers; and good developers at that. Note: I say "developers" and not "programmers". Anyone can pick up a VB book and claim to be a programmer, but it takes a rare breed to be inspired by an idea, and develop that idea.

This site is about redressing the balance. I am not and out-and-out advocate of free software, although I do believe in open source. Some things are worth paying for, but there is far too much power in the hands of far too few people. I see free software as an expression of the growing frustration with this monopoly. I don't think it will last forever.