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I cringe when I come across the aftermath of decisions that sorely needed a reality check from a "just starting to code reflex" prototype or POC. Unchecked by t
by closeparen 7y ago
I cringe when I come across the aftermath of decisions that sorely needed a reality check from a "just starting to code reflex" prototype or POC. Unchecked by the compiler or the need to actually work, complex design documents tend to derail into fantasy worlds.
I want to read about what you ended up having to do after making contact with the real world, not what you thought you were going to do at the whiteboard stage.
- epicureanideal 7y agoI don't think he's saying you should write excessively before doing anything, just that enough context should be given to understand the decision at that point in time. At which point someone should start coding, and after real world experience changes the plan, that too could be added to the decision journal.
- closeparen 7y agoWhich is why I love the idea of a decision journal! Currently we only really document the upfront designs. Ongoing logs would add even more value.
- jFriedensreich 7y agoexactly
- atoav 7y agoOn the other hand I always get suspicious when a professional cannot describe me roughly what the road ahead entails — if someone is unable to explains this it usually means that they are either making it up as they go, that they never did this before or that they can't really communicate the things they do. And none of these are good signs. Of course you cannot expect a hundred percent accurate picture with all the nitty gritty details beforehand, but unless you are working solo having clear goals is really important. Programming really is about the decisions one takes at each step and the domain specific knowledge one encodes within the project. That is why reflecting and documenting every once in a while really makes sense.