Software craftsmanship is an approach to software development that emphasizes the coding skills of the software developers themselves. It is a response by software developers to the perceived ills of the mainstream software industry, including the prioritization of financial concerns over developer accountability.
Historically, programmers have been encouraged to see themselves as practitioners of the well-defined statistical analysis and mathematical rigor of an engineering approach with the connotations of predictability, precision, mitigated risk and professionalism. This perspective led to calls for licensing, certification and codified bodies of knowledge as mechanisms for maturing the field.
The Agile Manifesto, with its emphasis on "individuals and interactions over processes and tools" questioned some of these assumptions. The Software Craftsmanship Manifesto extends and challenges further the assumptions of the Agile Manifesto, drawing a metaphor between modern software development and the apprenticeship model of medieval Europe.
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The movement traces its roots to the ideas expressed in written works. The Pragmatic Programmer by Andy Hunt and Dave Thomas and Software Craftsmanship by Pete McBreen explicitly position software development as heir to the guild traditions of medieval Europe. The philosopher Richard Sennet wrote about software as a modern craft in his book The Craftsman. Freeman Dyson, in his essay "Science as a Craft Industry", expands software crafts to include mastery of using software as a driver for economic benefit:
Following initial discussion, conferences were held in both London[1] and Chicago[2], after which, a manifesto[3] was drafted and put online to gather signatories. This was followed by the development of practices to further develop the movement including the exchange of talent in "Craftsman Swaps" and the assessment of skills in "Craftsmanship Spikes"
In 1999, The Pragmatic Programmer was published. Its sub-title, "From Journeyman to Master", suggested that programmers go through stages in their professional development akin to the medieval guild traditions of Europe.
In 2001, Pete McBreen's book Software Craftsmanship was published. It suggested that software developers need not see themselves as part of the engineering tradition and that a different metaphor would be more suitable.
In his August, 2008, keynote at Agile 2008, Bob Martin proposed a fifth value for the Agile Manifesto, namely "Craftsmanship over Crap". He later changed his proposal to "Craftsmanship over Execution".[4]
In December, 2008, a number of aspiring software craftsmen met in Libertyville, Illinois with the intent of establishing a set of principles for Software Craftsmanship.
On February the 26th, 2009, the first international Software Craftsmanship Conference was held in London.
In March, 2009, after ongoing conversation, a summary of the general conclusions was decided on. It was presented publicly, for both viewing and signing, in the form of a Manifesto for Software Craftsmanship.
In April, 2009, two of the companies in the software craftsmanship movement, 8th Light and Obtiva, experimented with a 'craftsman swap'.[5] The Chicago Tribune covered this event on 15 June 2009 [6]
In May, 2009, Adewale Oshineye held a seminar for the aspiring software craftsman in London.[7]
In May, 2009, Enrique Comba Riepenhausen started The Wandering Book initiative. The Wandering Book is a book that travels from craftsman to craftsman capturing the current thinking about the Zeitgeist of the Software Craftsmanship movement.[8]
In August, 2009, the first Software Craftsmanship North America conference was held in Chicago.
In October, 2009, the book Apprenticeship Patterns: Guidance for the Aspiring Software Craftsman was published by O'Reilly
In December, 2009, Obtiva published the idea of Software Craftsmanship Spikes to accompany Craftsman Swaps.
In January, 2010, a second Craftsman Swap was held between Obtiva and Relevance
In August, 2010, the London Software Craftsmanship Community was founded.
In October, 2010 a second Software Craftsmanship Conference was held in Bletchley Park
In October, 2010 a second Software Craftsmanship North America was held in Chicago
In March, 2011 a third Software Craftsmanship Conference was held in Bletchley Park
In September, 2011 International Software Craftsmanship and Testing Camp Unconference was held in Johannesberg, Bavaria