I think the difference is that in engineering you are legally obliged to follow this process and in software you are not.
The leads to a race to the bottom for which both the software vendors and consumers are responsible. Everybody wants the latest stuff as soon as possible, and wants to play less. If you release software only when everything's "right", the market will have moved on.
> If you release software only when everything's "right", the market will have moved on.
... unless we the people demand legislation that protects us from software "vendors" selling us their bugs.
I think it's interesting that people can see a car that doesn't work, and a house that's falling apart, but they can't really see software. Can you imagine someone saying "my house is leaking" and the landlord saying, with all seriousness: "Have you tried turning it off and on?"
Of course, we have legislature for those things, so why not software?
The leads to a race to the bottom for which both the software vendors and consumers are responsible. Everybody wants the latest stuff as soon as possible, and wants to play less. If you release software only when everything's "right", the market will have moved on.