7 unwritten software engineering laws learned the hard way
By
Anton Zaides
Baker's choice. Dense with flavour, light on filler.
Summary
The article discusses unwritten rules in software engineering that experienced engineers learn through trial and error. It presents 7 practical laws that go beyond the famous named laws (like Hyrum's, Conway's, Zawinski's), focusing on hard-earned lessons from breaking things in production. The author aims to help newer engineers avoid common painful mistakes by sharing these unwritten principles that every seasoned engineer knows but rarely documents.
Key quotes
· 4 pulledBeyond the named laws, there are many unwritten rules every engineer who's been around for a while just knows.
You learn them by breaking things and swearing you'll never do it again.
As everybody and their mother thinks they can build great software right now, I decided to help them avoid a bit of pain.
Here are 7 laws every engineer has broken at least once, learned the hard way
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