“IT” is my name and not “SOFTWARE”

Hello everybody, a new blog post very soon. It’s the sweetness of mangoes that has induced this quick activity at the blog. Getting to the point, the title-“IT is my name and not SOFTWARE”, is a topic of sheer Engineer’s interest but it is posted for the awareness of all Non-Engineer mass who often cannot distinguish between two addressees of enormous difference in their meaning, namely- “An IT Engineer” and “A Software Engineer”. The designation “Software Engineer” is often used by the mass and is a disastrous misnomer for an “IT Engineer”. The difference between a “Software Engineer” and an “IT Engineer” is as off the mark as between a “MASON” (Gujarati: “Kadiyo”) and a “Civil Engineer”. Why and How are the two questions which an Engineer asks for every statement made. Being an Engineer I will answer both “WHY” and “HOW” for this topic of mine. Here I elaborate:

Firstly, I would like to emanate the topic by explaining who the IT Engineers are actually. This will serve my explanation for “HOW” as mentioned above. Let me first tell you who an IT Engineer is and what does his capability spectrum inculcate. You can comfortably call an IT Engineer a Semi-EC Engineer and a Semi-Computer Engineer. An IT Engineer can comfortably handle most of the Electronic circuit networks, CMOS circuits and devices, most of Digital Circuits and Devices (included Making, Operation as well as Trouble Shooting). An IT Engineer is also the one who extends his reign in the brainy MICROPROCESSOR World (The heart of any Embedded System). These were some capabilities which he derives from the area of Electronics. Now coming to Computers. An IT Engineer can very comfortably assemble a Computer. Not only computer, he can also assemble for you a customized computer system (matching your or client’s requirement not seen anywhere in the world). Coming to communication now. An IT Engineer’s reign also extends up to the Communication arena.  He holds knowledge in the field of Digital Signals, Digital Switching and Digital Data Transmission (A Subject of Electronics and Communication Engineering). He is also a master in Networking which lies in his own IT Engineering domain. These were some core Engineering efficiencies any “GOOD” IT Engineer possesses. The real picture is even larger. I won’t hesitate in mentioning a very tangible fact that a SOFTWARE engineer may not have any of the above mentioned skills.

Now let me tell you what Software skills an IT Engineer is expected to groom himself to. The fields and titles I will be mentioning now lie under the foot of every GOOD IT Engineer. He is the undisputable master in the fields I will mention now. A few very common things which an IT Engineer masters are: Java (Uh, a cake walk for an IT Engineer), ASP.NET (Ah, faltoo hai), DBMS (I can make another Oracle, says an IT Engineer), PHP (Naya hai to kya hai, merko aata hai). Neural Networks, Ruby on Rails, Shell, CGI, Python, AJAX, Web Designing, Software Testing, Debugging and Management, are a few petite things to cite what lie under the sole rule of an IT Engineer. Now, these subjects that are elementary for an IT Engineer to know, interestingly are the ONLY things a SOTWARE Engineer knows! A software engineer knows only the application of computer software and nothing else. He is not the maker but just an operator. And interestingly Software Engineering is a subject of IT Engineering taught in one of the 8 Semesters in our College. To make the picture more explicit, the thing which Software Engineer learns in his total N Semesters, IT Engineers learn in just ONE semesters of the 8 odd semesters of the Engineering curriculum.
You might also be astonished to know that there is no designation such as “SOFTWARE Engineer”. It’s the insensible mass and the profit hungry IT Companies who have got this insane designation of “Software Engineer” into existence. Now the Indian mass is so generous that it calls people who have secured their Bachelors or Masters in Computer Applications as SOFTWARE Engineers. Oh common people, you’re calling those people Engineers who can just play with Computer Applications and not create them. Engineer is a BIG word that people don’t get it right today. People call any Tom, Dick and Harry an Engineer today. As you cannot call a Civil Engineer as Mason in the same way it’s a bigger offence to term an IT Engineer as a SOFTWARE Engineer. The IT companies have been equal culprits in this fiasco. Companies recruit Bachelors or Masters in Computer Apps (BCA, MCA) as they don’t have to pay them as high as Engineers, train them for 6 months and then certify them as what people call “SOFTWARE Engineers”. Come on people how come Engineers? Have some shame at least. Engineer is a word which carries huge responsibility with it. You’re conferring the title of “Engineer” on such people who don’t have to do with even “E” of Engineering. Another thing which the leading IT titans do is that they hire Engineers from other fraternities like “Mechanical”, “Electrical” etc, train them for 6 months and certify them as “SOFTWARE Engineers”. Shameless Indian IT Corps! Then we Indians ponder why we can’t have IT masterpieces from India. Ofcourse you will never have them as long as the players of clutches and brakes play insanely on Computer Codes and TCP/IP.

It’s high time the Indian mass understands the difference between “Information Technology Engineering” and “Software Engineering”. Information Technology is a term with fathomless criteria and deals with all kinds of “Information”, its processing and application. Be it Digital, Electronic, Web, or just anything. Where as Software Engineering is restricted to just and just COMPUTER SOFTWARE. Software Engineering can be just called an iota of “IT Engineering”.

Lastly, the problem is the Indian layman doesn’t understand the term “Information Technology” and therefore he harps the clichéd word – “Software”. If the layman doesn’t understand, its time we make him understand. For the IT Engineers reading this, let’s shout, let’s bark and make people aware that IT and SOFTWARE are not the same. Let’s fight for our real identify. Let’s strive for the identity of our designation “IT Engineer” which we latch unto by great efforts. Don’t give up when you have to make the layman understand the difference between “IT” and “SOFTWARE”. When you have earned the degree with efforts make sure people pay equivalent reverence to it. Therefore, just one last line to conclude and I dedicate to my fellow IT Engineers. “Not Software, IT it is, and IT Engineer is my name”.

Love & Regards,

Anish.