The Pragmatic Engineer

Software architecture with Grady Booch

Dec 4, 2024

Grady Booch, Chief Scientist for Software Engineering at IBM, discusses his pioneering role in software development, including his creation of UML and insights into the evolving architecture landscape. He reflects on his decision to decline the Chief Architect position at Microsoft and shares pivotal moments in software history. Grady also dives into the challenges of legacy systems, the rise of large language models, and offers invaluable advice for budding software engineers navigating today's tech environment.

01:30:43

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Episode guests

Grady Booch

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Episode notes

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Quick takeaways

Grady Booch emphasizes the evolution of software architecture, highlighting how architects now address broader systemic challenges rather than solely software issues.

The challenge of legacy systems underscores the complexities of maintaining outdated technologies, revealing a significant barrier to modernization efforts in software engineering.

As AI technologies like large language models grow, engineers must navigate ethical implications while ensuring responsible integration into existing systems and practices.

Deep dives

The Evolution of Software Engineering Abstraction

Software engineering has seen continuous evolution through rising levels of abstraction, enabling developers to build more robust systems. The introduction of powerful frameworks has shifted the focus from architectural decisions to selecting appropriate cloud services, messaging systems, and platforms. This transition in focus illustrates how architects have moved from addressing purely software issues to tackling broader systemic challenges. As a result, architects now face economic implications tied to their technological choices, underlining the need for strategic decision-making in software development.

Intro

2min

Understanding Legacy Systems in Software Architecture

5min

Exploring Software Architecture Across Diverse Domains

4min

The Evolution of Software Architecture

24min

Navigating Troubles and Evolution of UML in Software Development

3min

Navigating Software Evolution in a Digital Era

15min

Evolving Software Architecture Roles

24min

Navigating the Future of AI and Language Models

14min

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Welcome to The Pragmatic Engineer! Today, I’m thrilled to be joined by Grady Booch, a true legend in software development. Grady is the Chief Scientist for Software Engineering at IBM, where he leads groundbreaking research in embodied cognition.

He’s the mind behind several object-oriented design concepts, a co-author of the Unified Modeling Language, and a founding member of the Agile Alliance and the Hillside Group.

Grady has authored six books, hundreds of articles, and holds prestigious titles as an IBM, ACM, and IEEE Fellow, as well as a recipient of the Lovelace Medal (an award for those with outstanding contributions to the advancement of computing). In this episode, we discuss:

• What it means to be an IBM Fellow

• The evolution of the field of software development

• How UML was created, what its goals were, and why Grady disagrees with the direction of later versions of UML

• Pivotal moments in software development history

• How the software architect role changed over the last 50 years

• Why Grady declined to be the Chief Architect of Microsoft – saying no to Bill Gates!

• Grady’s take on large language models (LLMs)

• Advice to less experienced software engineers

• … and much more!

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Timestamps

(00:00) Intro