Sure, and the author explicitly acknowledges that a professional who'd done this a ton of times wouldn't have these problems, and would complete the job quickly. The point of the article is not to marvel about complexity, it's to remind people that whenever you're doing something new, your estimates can't be trusted.
The author also suggests that many software development tasks will be new, or be new enough to make your estimates unreliable. That is, even if it's a task you've done before, if any amount of time has passed, it's likely that quite a few of the details have changed, and your estimates will still be off.
> Just because you can do it yourself, doesn't mean you should.
The flip side of this is that sometimes it's fun. I've been doing a bunch of home improvement tasks lately that in the past I would probably call a professional to do. They take me longer to complete, and I have to buy some specialized tools, but I find the process enjoyable, and I learn things every time. (And even after buying the tools, it still ends up being cheaper than hiring someone.)
I'm currently thinking about adding recessed lighting to the walls along the base of the staircase in my house. The lighting in the staircase is too dim, but I don't want to replace the existing fixtures (for reasons I don't want to get into). I'll have to cut holes for new electrical boxes, and run new romex along the entire thing. This will probably be my most ambitious project to date, and I may screw up the drywall repair and need to hire someone to make it look nice. But I'm probably going to give it a go, and I'll learn things and have fun along the way.
The author also suggests that many software development tasks will be new, or be new enough to make your estimates unreliable. That is, even if it's a task you've done before, if any amount of time has passed, it's likely that quite a few of the details have changed, and your estimates will still be off.
> Just because you can do it yourself, doesn't mean you should.
The flip side of this is that sometimes it's fun. I've been doing a bunch of home improvement tasks lately that in the past I would probably call a professional to do. They take me longer to complete, and I have to buy some specialized tools, but I find the process enjoyable, and I learn things every time. (And even after buying the tools, it still ends up being cheaper than hiring someone.)
I'm currently thinking about adding recessed lighting to the walls along the base of the staircase in my house. The lighting in the staircase is too dim, but I don't want to replace the existing fixtures (for reasons I don't want to get into). I'll have to cut holes for new electrical boxes, and run new romex along the entire thing. This will probably be my most ambitious project to date, and I may screw up the drywall repair and need to hire someone to make it look nice. But I'm probably going to give it a go, and I'll learn things and have fun along the way.