Every program has (at least) two purposes: the one for which it was written and another for which it wasn't.
Alan PerlisRead
Programmers are not to be measured by their ingenuity and their logic but by the completeness of their case analysis.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The true measure of a programmer lies in their ability to analyze and address cases, rather than just their creativity and logical skills.
Alan Perlis emphasizes that a good programmer is evaluated not solely based on their inventive ideas and logical reasoning abilities, but rather on how comprehensively they analyze problems and cases. This suggests that thorough case analysis is critical in software development, as it ensures all aspects of a problem are considered, leading to more effective and robust solutions.
Themes
ProgrammingAnalysisSoftwareProblem-SolvingEvaluation
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a programming workshop to emphasize the importance of thorough analysis in coding.
More from Alan Perlis
All quotes βBecause of its vitality, the computing field is always in desperate need of new cliches: Banality soothes our nerves.
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In computing, turning the obvious into the useful is a living definition of the word "frustration".
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It is better to have 100 functions operate on one data structure than to have 10 functions operate on 10 data structures.
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A good programming language is a conceptual universe for thinking about programming.
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Every reader should ask himself periodically βToward what end, toward what end?ββbut do not ask it too often lest you pass up the fun of programming for the constipation of bittersweet philosophy.
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