• Reading some of the replies I'm shocked. How do we go from the proposal that adopting reasonable standards and practices with regard to software development is a noble goal to mandatory or regulatory edicts requiring standards compliance?

    If each of us decides to "do the right thing" regarding the adoption of standards others will follow suit. I know that altruism is probably a dated concept, but come on. We each have an opportunity to lead our industry in more than just salary and perks - we can lead by setting an example for others to follow and by adopting the good examples set for us by others within our workplace, field of expertise, and industry.

    Start small - what about documenting your work so the next guy (or future you) knows what's going on without having to spend exhaustive hours pouring over the code to figure it out? And if you're that guy that's doing the exhaustive research into a predecessor's work, document it while you're at it so the next poor schmuck that has to deal with that code will bless you rather than curse you.

    This should not require Herculean effort - it should only require that we decide to do it and then follow through. We decide, we don't wait for an external agency or regulatory body to make these decisions. It's up to us.