Progress is possible only if we train ourselves to think about programs without thinking of them as pieces of executable code.
Edsger DijkstraRead
Simplicity and elegance are unpopular because they require hard work and discipline to achieve and education to be appreciated.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Simplicity and elegance in work demand effort and a deep understanding to truly appreciate.
Edsger Dijkstra's quote highlights that achieving simplicity and elegance in any endeavor, particularly in programming or design, is often overlooked due to the hard work, discipline, and education required to attain it. While many may favor complexity and elaborateness, the genuine beauty of simplicity is found in the effort and skill needed to attain it, making it a rare and valuable quality.
Themes
SimplicityEleganceHard WorkDisciplineAppreciationEducation
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about effective design principles, this quote can emphasize the value of simplicity.
More from Edsger Dijkstra
All quotes βSimplicity is prerequisite for reliability.
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The purpose of abstraction is not to be vague, but to create a new semantic level in which one can be absolutely precise.
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We shall do a much better programming job, provided that we approach the task with a full appreciation of its tremendous difficulty, provided that we stick to modest and elegant programming languages, provided that we respect the intrinsic limitations of the human mind and approach the task as Very Humble Programmers.
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The tools we use have a profound and devious influence on our thinking habits, and therefore on our thinking abilities.
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LISP has jokingly been described as "the most intelligent way to misuse a computer." I think that description is a great compliment because it transmits the full flavour of liberation: it has assisted a number of our most gifted fellow humans in thinking previously impossible thoughts.
Edsger DijkstraRead
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