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A fallacy I've noticed often in sw engineering, and might fall under the nirvana fallacy definition, is the assumption that there is one best tool for doing thi
by Udik 7y ago
A fallacy I've noticed often in sw engineering, and might fall under the nirvana fallacy definition, is the assumption that there is one best tool for doing things- the one that supports the largest amount of use cases.
An metaphor I like to use is that of the software engineer buying a tank instead of a car: fits more people, drives on all terrain, basically indestructible, and in case an enemy is blocking the road you can always shoot it from the turret. Of course, it's horrendously expensive, wildly impractical, and you have to demolish your garage and rebuild it to fit it in, but hey, that was the best choice.
- austincheney 7y agoSpeaking of tanks and fallacies... https://www.amazon.com/Pentagon-Wars-Reformers-Challenge-Guard/dp/1557500819/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=pentagon+wars+burton&qid=1558882108&s=gateway&sr=8-1 https://www.amazon.com/Pentagon-Wars-Reformers-Challenge-Gua...
- MaxBarraclough 7y agoNot to mention the regulatory issues.
- lxwang 7y agoIf everyone just buys tanks, eventually they'll have no choice but to change the regulations.
- astrobe_ 7y agoBut a tank is so much more powerful.
- BeetleB 7y ago>A fallacy I've noticed often in sw engineering, and might fall under the nirvana fallacy definition, is the assumption that there is one best tool for doing things AKA "We must use git." :-)
- convolvatron 7y agoI dont really take it this way. for me the 'nirvana fallacy' is that if we design a bespoke system, in the limit we will save work and end up with a better product than if we found a tank and a car, welded them together, and fixed them up. whats not mentioned in the article is the 'never coming up for air' problem. maybe building a custom ruggedized car is worth the time investment - but the problem is that once your people get into that mode they always a new and interesting direction to take it, and never end up installing the seats and the taillights. i still believe that an 80% implementation of some idealized system generally wins over 'just mash together some stuff to make a demo and we'll deal with the fallout later'...but since no one else does anymore its kind of moot.