A Philosophy of Software Design: Taming Complexity for Maintainability

This article summarizes the core ideas from the book "A Philosophy of Software Design," which emphasizes reducing software system complexity to enhance maintainability. Complexity stems from dependencies and obscurity, manifesting as change amplification, high cognitive load, and unknown unknowns. Dependencies primarily arise from duplication, exceptions, inheritance, and temporal decomposition; obscurity results from vague names, inconsistency, and inadequate documentation. The author advocates for strategic programming, which involves investing time in clean designs and problem-solving alongside new feature implementation, thereby preventing complexity accumulation. The ultimate goal is to write software that is not only functional but also easily maintainable.