Understanding Dangerous Advice in Software Engineering: The Parallels Between Sharp Tools and Risky Guidance
By
gxhao
The bagel they save for the regulars. Don't skim, savour.
Summary
The article discusses the concept of "dangerous advice" in software engineering, comparing it to "sharp tools" like production access that can be both powerful and harmful depending on how they're used. The author argues that certain advice requires competence and judgment to apply properly, and giving such advice to the wrong person can lead to destructive outcomes, similar to providing inappropriate production access.
Key quotes
· 3 pulledDangerous advice is dangerous because (like sharp tools) it takes competence and judgment to use well.
Giving the wrong person dangerous advice is like giving the wrong person production SQL access - they might go off and do something enormously destructive with it.
These are tools that are powerful enough to be hugely helpful or harmful, depending on how they're used.
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