How many angels ...

[Johnny Thin]

... can be balanced on the end of a pin? Discuss!

After all, it's not a matter of whether pins are useful things which fulfil the purpose intended of them or not. Whether they can hold hats in place, or enhance the dressmaker's existence, is irrelevant. The sole purpose, when designing a pin, is to ensure that the requisite number of angels can be accommodated thereupon.

Similarly with software design. Software doesn't exist to do the job it's intended for, it is an art form unto itself - no matter if it's well enough written, thoroughly tested, documented etc, every statement must be conceived with Biblical integrity, every loop integrate into the cycle of the heavens, as though written by God himself complete with calipers and dividers. It's well worth spending an hour at work nitpicking over anything which is perceived to contravene this grand scheme of things.

So anybody care to start the ball rolling?

 

[alecstilleyedye]

or indeed the bollocks?

 

[walker]

someone's been on the christmas sherry and the mulled wine.

 

[Jaded]

One.

Once you had Kylie balanced there, who needs any other angels?

 

[walker]

So anybody care to start the ball rolling?

since when was this Bowls chat anyway?

 

[TVC]

If you are having a go at software engineers I'm with you, as a Project manager I've had to try to direct these people, it's like herding cats.
Nothing is simple, everything has to be gold plated, feature creep is more like a rush, and forget deadlines.

And why is it that:
Software Engineers have bugs,
Electronic Engineers have undocumented features,
and Mechanical Engineers have f**k ups?

As for Angels - they don't exist so the discussion is pointless.

(If you are wondering why I'm so agressive it's because I can't get a video clip to sync into my iPod - software engineers again)

 

[Johnny Thin]

You got it, Velvet! To me the coding is a means to an end, I know you guys are out with the customers and that's what counts and gets the projects signed off and the cash brought in.

I had to justify a line of code which tidied up a file (ie deleted it when appropriate) - OK I could have paid more attention to why it was left in that state, which I would have got round to at some point, but it was never going to be 'wrong' to do this action. Jeez, talk about pedantry ... he didn't get me agree it was wrong though, I always came up with a good counterargument.

And Jaded, I can think of somewhere I'd like to get Kylie balanced - and it wouldn't be on the end of a pin ...

 

[sloe]

I'm investigating Linux at the moment, with a view to personal use. My techie abilities protect me from getting down and dirty with code, so I'll assume the role of superfluous overarching director instead:

"Get enough eye's gazing upon them and all bugs become shallow" is a quote from Cathedrals and Bazaars. What thinkest thou of this, Johnny Thin?

 

[Johnny Thin]

Yes, you only crack the last bug when you've practically memorised every line of code!

 

[sloe]

Is that a quote? Forgive me if I dont know: the whole damn thing is dense with quotes - of Biblical integrity - to quote yourself. Sounds good tho. So are you open source in any way?

Must repeat: haven't an effing clue what we're talking about here.

 

[Johnny Thin]

Is that a quote?

No, it's true, Sod's law dictates that instead of going in and doing a nice quick fix you have to plough through every line till you know it off by heart

Forgive me if I dont know: the whole damn thing is dense with quotes - of Biblical integrity - to quote yourself. Sounds good tho. So are you open source in any way?

Must repeat: haven't an effing clue what we're talking about here.

I had an unbelievably pedantic session with my boss who is a stickler for writing perfect code for its own sake - as opposed to a 'hands on, get the job done' approach.

'How many angels can you balance etc' is a well-known favourite discussion topic for theologians. Thus it seemed to me that discussing this is missing the point of what a pin is for, the same way that being so pedantic about perfectly good code is missing the point of what that's for too.

Good luck with your Linux!

 

[LordoftheTeapot]

If you are having a go at software engineers I'm with you, as a Project manager I've had to try to direct these people, it's like herding cats.
Nothing is simple, everything has to be gold plated, feature creep is more like a rush, and forget deadlines.

And why is it that:
Software Engineers have bugs,
Electronic Engineers have undocumented features,
and Mechanical Engineers have f**k ups?

As for Angels - they don't exist so the discussion is pointless.

(If you are wondering why I'm so agressive it's because I can't get a video clip to sync into my iPod - software engineers again)

Pointless = Pins do not exist

 

[Dave5N]

Angels are pointless: there's deifinitely a point to pins.