News for hackers. Stuff that matters.
Re:Clean your codebase with basic information theory by lupusreal on Monday February 19, 2024 @05:56AM (#39428351)
In my experience, most programmers go way too hard with anticipating future changes and end up creating systems with entirely too much abstraction. Most of the time those changes never occur and the result is a codebase which has been obfuscated with excessive abstraction that bogs down anybody trying to maintain it. Future changes end up needing different abstractions than the ones which were preemptively created, and as the programmer is adding new abstractions to cover their present need they also create new premature abstractions, thinking they're saving themselves future trouble. The cycle then continues.

Better to KISS and leave abstraction for the future when it actually becomes necessary. If you start out with code that is only as complex as it needs to be in that moment, then it will generally be much easier to change it in the future.

Re:Clean your codebase with basic information theory by jpc0 on Monday February 19, 2024 @06:59AM (#39428829)
> Better to KISS and leave abstraction for the future when it actually becomes necessary.

I love this statement and for me personally is also perfectly encompassed in YAGNI. You ain't gonna need it.

Until it's proven you need that piece of code, don't write it.