Programmers need to stop writing code

THE WORLD is changing for developers according to Gartner's Application Development Summit. According to devsource.com, the Big G reckons that the days of developers thinking that turning out code on time and on budget were over.

One presentation said that rapid application deployment systems were damn good at turning out pants programs really fast. However it is more important to be agile rather than fast.

Gartner does not mean agile in the same way as most English speakers. Apparently the keys to unlocking the "agility paradox" are architecture, a focus on software process and engineering, and recycling. Sheesh and we thought it meant you were just more bendy.

The consultants managed to get more esoteric than a treatise on M Theory. Apparently programming will not go away, but it will not as important as "delivering excellence". This will be a great relief to those who do not like sitting in front of computers too long and would like to be out and about delivering a bit of excellence.

When they are not cycling around the corner with packages of excellence, programmers are supposed to be "assembling functionality" from components in a more agile and responsive way.

Gartner wants managers to consider better governance, which is surprising because we always thought that was what the word 'manager' meant.

It gets worse here. µ