Beyond Legacy Code

Embody Understanding

There is no formula for writing good software and I don’t think there ever will be—just like there’s no formula for writing a good book or writing a song or a screenplay or painting a painting. There are only guidelines you can follow, techniques you can apply, rules you can learn (and then break), and practices you can use.

All of these are just tools, and as with anything, the results you get depend on the skills you apply and how you wield the tools. And the more powerful the tool, the easier it is to misapply. You can cut more wood with a chainsaw than you can with a handsaw. You can also hurt yourself much more easily. This is one physical metaphor that holds true in the virtual domain. The more powerful the tool, the ...