Computing as Engineering

Abstract: Computing as a discipline is often characterized as a combination of three major traditions: theoretical, scientific, and engineering tradition. Although the three traditions are all considered equally necessary for modern computing, the engineering tradition is often considered to be useful but to lack intellectual depth. This article discusses the basic intellectual background of the engineering tradition of computing. The article depicts the engineering aims manifest in the academic field of computing, compares the engineering tradition with the other traditions of computing as a disci- pline, and presents some epistemological, ontological, and methodological views con- cerning the engineering tradition of computing. The article aims at giving the reader an overview of the engineering tradition in computing and of some open questions about the intellectual foundations and contributions of the engineering tradition in computing.