Beyond Legacy Code

First Principles

First principles were originally described by Marcus Aurelius, when he discussed the Golden Rule, which states, “Do unto others as you’d have them do unto you.” The reason the Golden Rule is a first principle is that much of our law, our society, even our culture is based on that one simple statement. You can infer other principles from first principles.

The Golden Rule is an overarching first principle in the law. It’s foundational to the pursuit of justice. Consider what the law would be like without the Golden Rule, if it were every person for themselves. Understanding and agreeing to the right principles is central to the success of any discipline.

Software development doesn’t yet have the equivalent of the Golden Rule or ...