Re:Introducing the BankSimple Engineering Team
by BenS on Thursday August 19, 2010 @06:21PM
(#1618848)
Can you clarify? I've always thought of engineers as people who solve problems by applying scientific knowledge. These guys seem to fit the bill, but I'm not an engineer (by any definition) so I don't know the terms first-hand.
[ Parent
| on HN ]
Re:Introducing the BankSimple Engineering Team
by dpapathanasiou on Thursday August 19, 2010 @07:16PM
(#1619005)
He probably means that he took the Professional Engineer (PE) exam, and is licensed in one or more states: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professional_Engineer
It's essentially a job requirement if you want to get into some types of engineering fields (electrical, mechanical, civil, etc.)
Re:Introducing the BankSimple Engineering Team
by SkyMarshal on Thursday August 19, 2010 @08:47PM
(#1619153)
You're correct. There's a sort of progression in the technical domain - Scientist/Mathematician (creates the knowledge) -> Engineer (applies it) -> End User.
In the computer field, there's an extra step: Computer Scientist -> Software/Hardware Engineer -> Application Developer -> End User. The boundary b/t Engineer and Developer is sometimes vague, though.
TLDR - calling someone building an entire startup from scratch and 'Engineer' is perfectly accurate, since the level of software and hardware customization required will ensure they're doing alot more than just developing apps.
PS - not to belittle anyone's career, I fit squarely in the Developer category myself. As mentioned above, all are necessary pieces of the puzzle.