It has been argued that programming in general has nothing to do with software engineering [1].

[1] https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/software-engineering-at...

It's free of security issues in the current context, that's the point.

You depend on calling a standard library function that was found deficient (maybe it's impossible to make it secure) and deprecated. Now there is a new function you should call. Your software doesn't work anymore when the deprecated function is removed.

Sure, you can say your software is feature complete but you have to specify the external environment it's supposed to run on. And THAT is always changing.

You're both right but looking at different timelines.

Relevant: https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/software-engineering-at...

This book was really helpful for me. It broke down how to structure tests, what results in brittle tests, what to avoid to keep tests maintainable. I believe it answers most of your questions. Software Engineering at Google, Chapters 11-14 Testing: https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/software-engineering-at...

seems to be the content of https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/software-engineering-at...

(This might be more abstract than you wanted)

Hopefully there's an overview of the code base in an `ARCHITECTURE.md` file[1], and then read through it, and the respective documentation and tests for the main modules mentioned in it.

If you assume their tests cover the important business logic / stuff "they want to keep" (ref. "Beyonce Rule"[2]), they should inform you about the most important stuff.

> [1] https://matklad.github.io/2021/02/06/ARCHITECTURE.md.html

> [2] https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/software-engineering-at...

https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/software-engineering-at...

As a heads up, this is a review of "Software Engineering at Google"[0]. Not first hand account of someone who worked there in case you are into that sort of a thing:)

[0]https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/software-engineering-at...

Vague question. What do you mean by "standard"?

Have you considered the SWE book?

https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/software-engineering-at...

I like the differentiation that engineering is programming integrated over time. [1]

To be a programmer you need the direct hard skills of coding literacy, analytical and logical thinking, combined with enough grit and creativity to see a problem through to completion. If you have that, you'll be a decent programmer, but you may not be a good engineer.

Engineering requires the maturity of thought to consider your actions and your solution over time. It requires more wholistic thinking and not just from the tech architecture point of view. Human soft skills tend to be more important over these time scales: communication, empathy, humility, courage. It's these skills that sustain success.

[1] https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/software-engineering-at...

I'm looking for reviews as well. FWIW, there's a list of table of contents available here: https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/software-engineering-at...