The Tao of Programming

A program should be light and agile, its subroutines connected like a strings of pearls. The spirit and intent of the program should be retained throughout. There should be neither too little nor too much, neither needless loops nor useless variables, neither lack of structure nor overwhelming rigidity.

A program should follow the ‘Law of Least Astonishment’. What is this law? It is simply that the program should always respond to the user in the way that astonishes him least.

A program, no matter how complex, should act as a single unit. The program should be directed by the logic within rather than by outward appearances.

If the program fails in these requirements, it will be in a state of disorder and confusion. The only way to correct this is to rewrite the program.

– Geoffrey James, “The Tao of Programming”

Joryj Kłoc

Today’s music recommendation corner: Joryj Kłoc. Five crazy modern Cossacks from Ukraine play what can only be described as psychedelic pop-folk-rock. They play really energetic tunes and are not shy of incorporating the lead motive from Barbra Streisand (yes, THAT pop song) into their first hit; also, their use of a hurdy-gurdy should probably be considered illegal in most Slavic countries. The outcome balances right between outright kitsch and outright fabulous – which means you’ll either love them or hate them. You decide. The entire first album is available for listening on Soundcloud.

Hacker Ideals

Our entire summer house has been transformed into a giant bedroom this evening due to the sheer number of guests that arrived today. They want to sleep, I want to code, and my muse is mad at me for some reason – so she sent me inspiration in the middle of the night.

Believe me or not, but right now I’m sitting in the bathroom, in the dark, cranking out C code on my laptop. It’s the only place in the whole house where I can sit without disturbing anyone’s sleep.