Re: [comphist] Lost arts from the 8 bit days.

[Eric S. R. <es...@th...>]

Thomas Dodd <te...@cy...>:
> >And it really does develop skills that come in handy later.  I used to do 
> >entire java projects in about 15k, when similar implementations were 500k, 
> >and they couldn't figure out how I was doing it and I couldn't imagine how 
> >they could be so completely clueless.  (The ability to declare multiple 
> >classes doesn't mandate it, and the ability to create multiple threads or 
> >object instances does not require doing so either.  Duplication of code or 
> >data is bad, but making a forest of "if" statements just so you can share 
> >three lines doesn't always make sense either.  Think about what you're 
> >actually doing, try to understand what the machine's doing, actually 
> >measure things and measure the RIGHT things...  Sigh...)

Learning good, economicall design is very valuable, but,,,
 
> But the art of small code, using neat trick, like the unused bits
> of one variable for bools and condition registers is not done now.
> Imagine most x86 programmers trying to write code with just the
> 6502 register set (A, X and Y).

I am *glad* this kind of programming is dying out.  And I say that as
somebody who did a lot of it back when it was necessary.  I'll say
this once:

	MAINTAINABILITY IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN EFFICIENCY

No, that wasn't the case fifteen years ago, or even ten.  Machines were
too constrained.  But today, if I were managing a project and caught anybody
doing tricks like you describe, I'd chew him out but good.  There is such
a thing as being too clever in the wrong direction, and this is it.
-- 
		<a href="http://www.tuxedo.org/~esr/">Eric S. Raymond</a>