Re: Artistically creative expression has no role in software design

["Randy Brukardt" <randy@rrsoftware.com>]

"Jeffrey Carter" <spam@spam.com> wrote in message
news:7MdLc.9515$Qu5.3023@newsread2.news.pas.earthlink.net...
> Marc A. Criley wrote:
>
> > E.g., freeway overpasses. I strongly suspect that the overpasses built
> > within a given state, conforming to specific industry and state
> > requirements, and on similar terrain will all be virtually identical,
with
> > only functionally-derived differences in length, clearance, and approach
> > angle.
>
> Not necessarily. A new interchange between 2 freeways (1 existing, the
> other being constructed) near my home has sculptures based on the art of
> the aboriginal people of this part of North America molded into the
> supports, and is being painted a terra-cotta color.

That's a relatively recent innovation, and it seems to be mostly limited to
urban areas. Here in Wisconsin, you can tell within a couple of years which
year a freeway was constructed by the style of the overpasses (at least for
freeways constructed between 1960 and 1980, which is the majority of them).
That seems to hold in other midwestern states as well (although I don't know
the actual dates of construction well enough to be sure). In recent years,
upgrades and replacements have had that somewhat harder (because the new
bridges obscure the date of original construction) - but they're easy to
pick out.

                     Randy.