237: The Agile Approach to Software Development

TDD, design and thoughts on Agile principles

Thank you for reading Snippets of Text. Snippets from media about tech, programming, parenting, and more. This is a preview of a post available exclusively to paying subscribers. You can get unlimited access to all articles by purchasing a subscription.

Unrelated: Why You Should Prioritize Flexibility over Perfection in Software Design

When it comes to applications, not all of them are enjoyable to work on, especially those that are difficult to modify. Rather than striving for perfection, it's important to prioritize flexibility and avoid getting too caught up in acquiring ideal solutions. Skilled designers understand that objects can have ambiguous classifications, and loosely connected objects require a greater understanding of their environment or dependencies but promote independent contexts between components.

Design should prioritize flexibility and functionality over aesthetics. Hasty decisions about application structure should be avoided. Instead, decisions should be based on their relevance to the business. It's crucial to rely on good design practices rather than personal preference. Before adding new features to the code base, it's wise to refactor the existing code to gain a better understanding of the problem at hand. The behavior of a software system ultimately determines its performance and capabilities. 

Off Topic: TDD to Evolve System's Design

As developers, every line of code we write is a crucial decision. That's where TDD comes in handy. It helps us validate these decisions by providing feedback. We make design decisions, and TDD enables us to get feedback. Testing confirms, but it doesn't necessarily mean it affirms. TDD puts evolutionary pressure on design, moving it towards change with each new feature. Testing principles provide a cost-effective and flexible way to extend a system. When using TDD to write code, it's crucial to reevaluate the design if there's too much friction. The key is understanding when each design decision is worth the effort instead of deciding whether to use TDD. Applying design ideas without considering the context can result in messy code, even if it passes tests. To ensure that the software can evolve with the business, it's crucial to follow the rules that define it. TDD has an advantage over other approaches because it allows us to experiment with multiple solutions for the same problem in less time. 

Current Work: The Agile Approach to Software Development

When developing software, it's essential to focus on the business complexity rather than just the technical aspect. Merely using tools to speed up coding with frameworks is not the solution. Understanding the goal complexity is more important than coding.

Thanks for taking a look at the free preview of Snippets of Text. Please consider subscribing to the paid version if you find my work helpful. This way, I can spend more time developing new ideas to share with you.