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Who cares about best in Software Engineering? Time and again I've wanted to do the best, to be asked to just provide a "workable solution" because either the be

Who cares about best in Software Engineering? Time and again I've wanted to do the best, to be asked to just provide a "workable solution" because either the best costs time or money. And I get it, business is all about tradeoffs. I do the best in domains where I have the complete freedom to do so.

klmadfejno 6y ago
I agree. As well as for most jobs. I think Jackie's perspective makes a lot of sense as a creative artist though. The extra effort has a tangible reward and is appreciated by those around him.
zeroxfe 6y ago
You can consider reframing the problem: what's the best I can do, given the constraints (time, money, resources, etc.) I find that I'm most creative when I'm constrained. And these types of mindset hacks allow me to enjoy whatever I work on.
- marcinzm 6y ago
  There's an argument I believe that the best art comes when the artist has to deal with constraints. The lack of freedom in certain directions forces them to go deeper in the other directions.
  - purplecats 6y ago
    yup, just like in society where you're not allowed to talk about or question things that haven't been approved for conversation, but you can dive infinitely deep in areas that are approved.
ThrowawayR2 6y ago
> "Who cares about best in Software Engineering?" Systems and low-level software such as compilers, operating systems, platform software. A bug in the kernel affects billions of devices, a bug in AWS/Azure/GCP affects millions of VMs.
mytailorisrich 6y ago
'Best' is something that ought to be defined otherwise it can mean anything. In any business the bottom line is king and time and resources are limited (in fact that's the way it is for about everything in life). You can still do your best while delivering a "workable solution". In fact being the best at delivering workable solutions is a very good and fulfilling aim. You can strive for quality with sensible design, least number of defects, etc. while delivering on time and within budget.

klmadfejno 6y ago

I agree. As well as for most jobs. I think Jackie's perspective makes a lot of sense as a creative artist though. The extra effort has a tangible reward and is appreciated by those around him.

zeroxfe 6y ago

You can consider reframing the problem: what's the best I can do, given the constraints (time, money, resources, etc.) I find that I'm most creative when I'm constrained. And these types of mindset hacks allow me to enjoy whatever I work on.

marcinzm 6y ago
There's an argument I believe that the best art comes when the artist has to deal with constraints. The lack of freedom in certain directions forces them to go deeper in the other directions.
- purplecats 6y ago
  yup, just like in society where you're not allowed to talk about or question things that haven't been approved for conversation, but you can dive infinitely deep in areas that are approved.

ThrowawayR2 6y ago

> "Who cares about best in Software Engineering?" Systems and low-level software such as compilers, operating systems, platform software. A bug in the kernel affects billions of devices, a bug in AWS/Azure/GCP affects millions of VMs.

mytailorisrich 6y ago

'Best' is something that ought to be defined otherwise it can mean anything. In any business the bottom line is king and time and resources are limited (in fact that's the way it is for about everything in life). You can still do your best while delivering a "workable solution". In fact being the best at delivering workable solutions is a very good and fulfilling aim. You can strive for quality with sensible design, least number of defects, etc. while delivering on time and within budget.