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← When an abstraction turns out to be wrong, the fastest way forward is…
17 connected korrents · 15 moments from 8 Jan 2013 to 4 Oct 2026.
Everything filed under design
design
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creativity
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simplicity
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taste
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software quality
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religion
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compilers Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Same subject Read this korrent: When an abstraction turns out to be wrong, the fastest way forward is to inline it back into every caller and let the duplication show what the right one is. When an abstraction turns out to be wrong, the fastest way forward is to inline it back into every caller and let the duplication show what the right one is. Last stated 11 years ago
20 Jan 2016
SM
Sandi Metz — holds since 2016-01-20 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Parameters and conditional branches accumulating inside shared code are the diagnostic that the abstraction is wrong. — tap to centre the map on it Parameters and conditional branches accumulating inside shared code are the diagnostic that the abstraction is wrong. Last stated 11 years ago
20 Jan 2016
SM
Sandi Metz — holds since 2016-01-20 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Duplication is cheaper than the wrong abstraction, so code should not be made reusable before there are real examples of what the reuse has to do. — tap to centre the map on it Duplication is cheaper than the wrong abstraction, so code should not be made reusable before there are real examples of what the reuse has to do. Last stated 11 years ago
20 Jan 2016
SM
Sandi Metz — holds since 2016-01-20 — tap for who they are
CM
Casey Muratori — holds since 2014-05-28 — tap for who they are
Same subject: An abstraction chosen wrongly at the start means a team can never make its software great, however good that team is. — tap to centre the map on it An abstraction chosen wrongly at the start means a team can never make its software great, however good that team is. Last stated a year ago
18 Sept 2025
TL
Tobias Lütke — holds since 2025-09-18 — tap for who they are
Same subject: If a chain of reasoning rests on a wrong inherited recipe, the conclusions built on top of it will be just as wrong. — tap to centre the map on it If a chain of reasoning rests on a wrong inherited recipe, the conclusions built on top of it will be just as wrong. Last stated 11 years ago
6 Nov 2015
TU
Tim Urban — holds since 2015-11-06 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A compiler that names every place a change breaks turns refactoring into fixing errors until the compiler stops shouting. — tap to centre the map on it A compiler that names every place a change breaks turns refactoring into fixing errors until the compiler stops shouting. Last stated 5 months ago
20 May 2026
AR
Alice Ryhl — holds since 2026-05-20 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Duplicating logic is no longer painful, while abstractions still are. — tap to centre the map on it Duplicating logic is no longer painful, while abstractions still are. Last stated a month ago
10 Sept 2026
PS
Peter Steinberger — holds since 2026-09-10 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Cloud abstraction problems cannot be fixed by adding more abstraction layers on top. — tap to centre the map on it Cloud abstraction problems cannot be fixed by adding more abstraction layers on top. Last stated 6 months ago
22 Apr 2026
DC
David Crawshaw — holds since 2026-04-22 — tap for who they are
Same subject: Debugging by reasoning backward from a bad state is inherently harder than reasoning forward from a known decision point. — tap to centre the map on it Debugging by reasoning backward from a bad state is inherently harder than reasoning forward from a known decision point. Last stated 2 years ago
18 Jul 2024
RC
Russ Cox — holds since 2024-07-18 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A business is more likely to fail from taking on too much complexity than from lacking resources. — tap to centre the map on it A business is more likely to fail from taking on too much complexity than from lacking resources. Last stated 8 years ago
29 Sept 2018
TG
Tren Griffin — holds since 2018-09-29 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A business succeeds through a small number of highly effective distribution channels, not many mediocre ones. — tap to centre the map on it A business succeeds through a small number of highly effective distribution channels, not many mediocre ones. Last stated 3 years ago
17 Feb 2024
AW
Adam Wiggins — holds since 2024-02-17 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A candidate negotiating an offer should make every ask fit one line of logic. — tap to centre the map on it A candidate negotiating an offer should make every ask fit one line of logic. Last stated 2 months ago
9 Aug 2026
AW
Adam Ward — holds since 2026-08-09 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A big part of taste is delivering high levels of craft in an accessible way so that as many people as possible can experience it. — tap to centre the map on it A big part of taste is delivering high levels of craft in an accessible way so that as many people as possible can experience it. Last stated 6 months ago
21 Apr 2026
BJ
Brandon Jacoby — holds since 2026-04-21 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A company name can have different appeal to corporate buyers versus their customers. — tap to centre the map on it A company name can have different appeal to corporate buyers versus their customers. Last stated 3 weeks ago
4 Oct 2026
PG
Paul Graham — holds since 2026-10-04 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A first draft should not be graded good or bad; it is only the material that taste then gets to act on. — tap to centre the map on it A first draft should not be graded good or bad; it is only the material that taste then gets to act on. Last stated 3 months ago
6 Aug 2026
GS
George Saunders — holds since 2026-08-06 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A feeling of responsibility is probably the greatest inhibitor of creativity; great ideas came from people not paid to have them — tap to centre the map on it A feeling of responsibility is probably the greatest inhibitor of creativity; great ideas came from people not paid to have them
IA
Isaac Asimov — holds since c. 1959 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A free-wheeling, anarchic neural organization may be the secret of human creativity, at the price of susceptibility to mental illness — tap to centre the map on it A free-wheeling, anarchic neural organization may be the secret of human creativity, at the price of susceptibility to mental illness Last stated 14 years ago
8 Jan 2013
DD
Daniel Dennett — holds since 2013-01-08 — tap for who they are
Same subject: A person who works from a recipe, even an innovative one, starts from something that already exists. — tap to centre the map on it A person who works from a recipe, even an innovative one, starts from something that already exists. Last stated 11 years ago
6 Nov 2015
TU
Tim Urban — holds since 2015-11-06 — tap for who they are