Meanwhile, the loss of patent protection for software could make programmers realise at last that they have more in common with authors, artists, publishers and musicians than they ever had with molecular architects and chip designers.
The two main answers, according to computer scientists, are new tools that will make programmers more productive and new technology that will enable more people who use software to program for themselves.
Some feel that the amount of memory on today's computers can make programmers lazy and profligate.
That impulse does not make programmers any less patriotic or their advice any less relevant to national security.
While frameworks, APIs and structures might make programmers feel more productive, true productivity comes from unpacking the containers and truly understanding what's inside.
The new system has made programmers more conscious than ever of keeping a listener entertained and engaged, and as a result fewer songs get identified.
With the implementation of Software Copyright Act of 1980, software was defined as "literary work," thereby making programmers the equivalent of modern day literary authors.
One of my favorite projects was a proposal from Kyle Machulis, robotics engineer and self-described hacker, to figure out what makes programmers write bad code.
Of course, more complex games could be made which function at full speed only on the TI-83 Plus Silver Edition, but it remains to be seen if many such games will be made (programmers might prefer to keep TI-83 Plus compatibility instead).
Microsoft argues this enables the development of better tools for JavaScript and makes programmers more productive, while preserving compatibility with existing JavaScript libraries.
