User:Neutrinokitchen

Data plumber is a colloquial expression, an informal equivalent to titles such as, but not limited to, Systems Analyst, Computer Programmer, Information Technology Specialist, and Software Engineer. This is a self-adopted term for some in these professions, born from the realization that one's work in this field amounts to little more than "plumbing" data from one place to another.

The plumbing analogy deepens as we accrue a list of parallel technology: storage media and water tanks, bandwidth and pipe diameter, switches and valves, display devices and shower heads, etc. The self-appointed title of data plumber is a bit of humbling self-deprecating humor, possibly as an apologetic response to having to reply with an industry-standard yet cryptic title when asked of their profession.

The origin of data plumber may predate the 1970's, yet "information technology" has evolved in pace with modern plumbing technology such that the term is still accurate: on-demand videos and on-demand hot water (tankless water heaters), firewalls and water filtration, anti-virus and anti-bacterial treatment,etc. Neutrinokitchen (talk) 17:37, 16 January 2010 (UTC)