The paper reviews developments in the implications of software programming in art practice whilst pointing to a recognition of the art in programming. The concerns in software-based art are significantly more conceptual than was often the case before. Following the Russian constructivist artists, the software artist is more concerned with the plan for making the work than for conventional rules of composition. The paper reviews a history of the author's use of various software representations in his art practice and proposes that art is all the richer for embracing software but, in so doing, the challenge to the artist is to be at least as deeply involved in software as in any other aspect of their practice.