This is a great point. The author completely disregards the fact that this is a tool, and a battle tested one at that. Moreover, GitHub has presumably done a lo

This is a great point. The author completely disregards the fact that this is a tool, and a battle tested one at that. Moreover, GitHub has presumably done a lot of testing and analysis on how people use and navigate their site. The fact that author disregards this fact (or, likely possibility) shows a stark lack of understanding in the product side of design. Don't get me wrong, design and it's principles are important and I appreciate pretty stuff as much as the next user. But use those to inform your new products or features, don't assume that "bad" design is the result of poor design choices, but actually smart product decisions by a team with a good understanding of how users actually use the tool. Maybe I'm giving too much credence to GitHub's product team, but the author gave none so I figured I'd toss a vote of confidence their way.