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Discussion on: Work as Developer, Think like an Engineer: Vertical + Horizontal Knowledge

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manuelbarzi • Edited

Both things are important. Tools (tech) are what usually "hooks the fish", and then the question arises: "how does this work?". In other words, it is not only the WHAT, but also the HOW; both things are important.

As a DEV you may have specialised, focussing on certain techs more than others, that's why you are also "a DEV", and probably a good one on those techs, working for one or more companies (vertical knowledge).

But then you may improve getting deeper, "understanding how things work", the patterns and principles behind, the design and the architecture at the end, and then getting closer to an Engineer mind (horizontal knowledge).

It's not about just focussing on "a pure engineer", but on "a developer approaching to an engineer", making engineering an inclusive thing into development, not just exclusively engineering, nor exclusively development.