Understanding Software Rot: The Impact of Changing Environments on Software Longevity
By
pabs3
Crispy enough to crunch, soft enough to enjoy. A good bake.
Summary
The article discusses the concept of 'software rot,' where software degrades over time due to changes in its environment, such as updates to dependent libraries that lack backward compatibility. It critiques the idea that software must be constantly maintained to avoid obsolescence and suggests focusing on the reliability of the underlying environment instead.
Key quotes
· 4 pulledSoftware rot is generally thought of as degradation of software due to a changing environment.
A better approach might be to talk about the reliability of the environment the software depends on.
Would you build a house on a bog?
It is often necessary to build on 'bogs' (i.e., 'actively developed').
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