"Quality happens only when someone is responsible for it." I admire that as an example of good headline-writing: it tells you one of the important points that

"Quality happens only when someone is responsible for it." I admire that as an example of good headline-writing: it tells you one of the important points that the article wants to make. I find it interesting to read this piece in light of recent discussions about Worse-Is-Better vs. The-Right-Thing: I read PHK as arguing definitely from a The Right Thing perspective. I find his argument appealing, but I'm not entirely sure that I'm persuaded by it. On the appealing side, I look at Apple, Python, and emacs: things I use every day, things shaped unmistakeably by someone with vision, authority, and taste, and think that there's got to be something to this argument.