Elon Musk could transform the tech world and improve people’s lives
Software is crucial to the human experience today. It’s everywhere…in our mobile devices, our cars, social media, commerce and finance, etc. We rely on it. We expect it to function without bugs or glitches. We want it to adapt and evolve quickly to our ever-changing needs.
However, the reality is very disappointing. The software we use is never without annoying glitches, not even from the likes of Apple or Google. Bug fixes or feature improvements either take their time in coming, or when they do come, they introduce new glitches as part of the package. Part of the problem, of course, is that software is getting more and more complex, which challenges our ability to manage the process of software creation. Part of it is the business of selling software to us; in the competitive market, vendors are constantly rushing to get the software out, and in doing so, they cut corners or place incredible pressure on developers to deliver earlier than is wise.
It does not help that the tools we’ve been using to write this software for the past several decades are antiquated and cumbersome. Some of the tools, such as C++ and Java, are rigid and unforgiving. The imposition of static typing adds to this rigidity, effectively placing a straightjacket on our creativity and deftness. Some of the tools, such as PHP and JavaScript, are nightmares of language design; they clutter our minds with extraneous nonsense that distracts us and impedes us. And nearly all of these tools rely on the antediluvian notion of files and folders which goes all the way back to the 1960s and 1970s.
There’s no question that we’ve milked these tools for all they’re worth. We are surprisingly good at using them to build our economies. We’ve become so good at it, in fact, that we can’t imagine writing software any other way.
But is the old way the best way? Is there no possibility that we could improve the process dramatically, giving our developers easier and more productive tools? Can we significantly improve the quality of our software? Can we improve on delivery times? Surely, we don’t have to live with the status quo.
I believe the IT industry is ripe for a tectonic shift. I look for courage and boldness from leaders such as Elon Musk to help transform the industry. I have a vision.
Smalltalk is not the Grand Old Man of programming languages, but the future of software development created 40 years in the past.
Ironically, the means to improve greatly on software creation have been around for decades. So why haven’t we picked up on it? To a large degree, it’s because Smalltalk has gotten a bad rap. People are like that; once they’ve gotten a certain perception in their heads, it’s damn fucking hard to remove it.
Also, it’s damn fucking hard (excuse my French) to get developers to let go of their file-based toolchains. There’s no other way to put it.
The traditional methods of software creation have worked well, but they’ve also incurred many hidden inefficiencies that are not obvious to us until we try something different. These inefficiencies have a continuing cost, a big cost.
To be sure, migrating to a new method and new tools has a cost, as well. It takes time to develop a new infrastructure. It takes time to ramp up the developer base. But you pay this upfront cost only once. After that, it’s pure profit; the gains over traditional methods are prodigious.
You don’t have to take my word for it. Give Smalltalk a try; use it in a pilot project. Immerse yourself in it for a while, because you may not appreciate the gains until you’ve had some experience with it under your belt. Then the proverbial light bulb will blaze!
I encourage you to rally around Smalltalk. The secret to getting better software more quickly into our hands has been in front of us all along. We only need to reach out and grab it. The following (cryptic) logo represents our future…
Learn more [1].
And Elon, how about lending your support? We could sure use it.
Much thanks to Henry Wismayer for inspiring this article.
[1] This syntax-in-a-nutshell article provides a good hint.
