Computer engineering VS software engineering VS Computing Science?

pkhamidar2com

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Hello there people

My friend and i, both of us are on the forum, he will probably see this thread also later today, his username is ps3hacker12 so yeah. Anyways we are both learning Qbasic for now and we have a
basic beginners knowledge but we find it fun and interesting.

however we also both want to persue careeres towards computing but we arnt too sure about the directions we should go towards.

We are both interested in maths, although it isnt our main intrest. My friend is more interested in maths physics and computing and maths, while i am more interested in math biology and computing and maths. Both of us do chemistry, although that has little to with programming.

So yeah... answer the question please :)

Oh and also both of us want to go into developing software, like with langauges such as c++ or java etc.... but we have no
knowledge at anything...
 

pkhamidar2com

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i thought you said yuo only need further maths if you wanted to do computer science rather than software engineering... i dont like further maths :(

oh and my current A levels are maths, chemistry, biology, computing
 

rozz

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well - CS (computer science) is really Software Engineering if you ask me.. In the US, Computer Engineering is described most as hardware based items (getting into the nitty-gritty of processor programming and creation.)

CS/Software Engineering is more software creation and the learning of how to think like a programmer. Whether you learn Jave, C++, etc is up to you. Learning the languages isnt the hard part, the hard part is learning how to think like software and how to efficiently build a program. It takes real talent, something i cant do well. Why i chose computer engineering and network administration. I like the physical side of computers.

For the biology side, CS/Software Engineer would be best. There is a better demand for software for biology than hardware.

IMHO of course.. ;)
 

BaronMatrix

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First, welcome. Second every major science can use software for equations so there's that. Direction in computers depends on where you want to be, the OS(C\C++), the web(Java\Javascript-HTML\C#-ASP.Net), the desktop(C\C++\C#\VB.NET), the cloud(Java\JavaScript\ASP.NET). They all use different tech and languages. I was an ME before I started at Microsoft. You can actually toss a coin.
 

BaronMatrix

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current a-levels are maths, physics, chemistry and computing. After a bit of research i found i really should be taking further maths so in going to do that too, so yeah what do you guys think, im leaning more towards software engineering.



Most of the sciences lean towards Fortran (FormulaTranslation) so if you want to stay in the sciences you only need Fortran. But you can use C\C++ or MAYBE C# depending on your skill level.
 

pkhamidar2com

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you know the programs for sciences, what are they like? could you give me some examples.

I wouldnt mind working for programming in science. And also i agree on what ps3hacker12 said, about chemical engineering.

Im really not too bothered about how much it pays, as in yeah i dont want a *** paying job, but i need something to keep me stable in the future. However the little amounts of money that there may be doesnt make a difference as long as i enjoy
my job...

Also what about game development and stuff like that. Prgoramming for games? I know webgames you need to know java or flash, but also what about other games, pc games? I assume its mainly c++ yes?

I would also like to work in OS too, developing windows with microsoft would be pretty awesome, and yes i need c++ for that too... but i dont know, you need to be pretty damn gifted to work with microsoft.

BTW you say there is more need for software for biology, what type of software, do you mean i will need to learn fortran or something?

 
G

Guest

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software engineering - the best job in 2012 with high salary
hardware engineering is ok though

i think this page can provide some interesting infos http://computerengineeringsalarydata.com/computer-hardware-engineer-vs-computer-software-engineer/
 

8350rocks

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Software engineers are more geared towards game design, but hardware engineers can fit in as well, the thought process is similar. What you're looking at in game design is being well rounded. You have to understand the hardware and it's limits, but you also need some coding skills to varying degrees. I am not a great coder, I can do it, but it's not my strength. What I do is a lot of theory crafting and formulae for games, but, I also work as a go between of sorts between coders and systems analysts. I can analyze hardware and give physical limitations so that coders can more efficiently utilize the tools given. Then in the QA side of things, I also have skills that apply. Game designers are really more a Jack of All trades computer geek...for lack of better terminology. The biggest thing with game designers is creativity and adaptability on the fly, you also have to be able to work toward deadlines.
 
Essentially, software engineers are the people who are going to write most of the "big" programs. Basically, anything that compiles as an .exe. You'll see a lot of C/C++/C#/Java, with a splattering of other languages (Ada, Pascal). You sometimes see these guys overlap with IT, but not often.

Mechanical Engineers are the ones who typically design/build the hardware, and usually are the ones who create the Firmware that drives the hardware (you see a lot of Fortran/Basic in this realm).

IT is typically where most of the web domain comes from; you see a LOT of Java/Scripting languages here.

In my case, I'm a Software Engineer, but since I work at a VERY low level, I've had to learn a lot about EE/ME along the way to write good code. Most people don't need to go down to that level though.