There are a lot of issues surrounding the meta-issue that falls under the rubic of Overseas Tech Industry Outsourcing, but one issue in particular strikes me.

Outsourced jobs – overseas or not – are analagous to the current battle (of sorts) over software.

On one hand, there are the Microsofts and Oracles that are trying – in some cases, desperately – to maintain the status quo: Software is a proprietary product; binary-only distrubution and so on.

On the other hand, there are the RMSs and ERSs and Linuses (Lini?) who are pushing for more open ways to develop software, to break down the patent walls.

You can make a case for either side, but it is hard to disagree that the momentum is currently on the side of the open-source software folks. This is also the side that sees software as a commodity, much like Intel boxes (hardware) are today.

The entire issue of outsourced tech work is the same concept, to a degree. Basically, there is some company or group of individuals who architect things in all cases (hardware, software or software projects) and then others – without the need for higher skills or vision (though they may possess both) – put the things together.

Dell architects a PC, slaps it together from parts for Nvida, Intel and so on.

Linus or a kernel manager creates the Linux version, others contribute this or that little piece or extension to same.

Company X has this software project that needs App A to talk to App B; the architecture/scope is done by a small group and then the 1 million lines of code needed are done by groups…who cares where?

Why should Dell have to make RAM chips?

Why shouldn’t Linux get a print driver for an obscure printer from someone who just wants to do it for kicks?

Why shouldn’t economy of scale work/basic economic reality drive coding? Just because the company is in India doesn’t mean those workers can’t do defined Java tasks as well as American workers.

Fortunately, I have still seen relatively little pushbacks by the tech talkers (i.e. bloggers and tech columnists) about the tech outsourcing.

I have, of course, heard a lot about this from the talking heads who are in political office or who want to get there. To a degree this is understandable – hey, jobs are hard to come by here, so let’s keep what we can – but it can’t ignore reality.

The tech industry can’t afford to fall for the empty rhetoric that is fueling the press releases of the MPAA and (especially) the RIAA. Times have changed, and even if it impacts the industry in a way that you (or you…or you…) don’t like, get over it. The genie is out of the bottle. Work with it or – ultimately – be left behind.