Part of language design is perturbing the proposed feature in various directions to see how it might generalize in the future.
SoftwareDesignLanguage designCreativityInnovationExperimentation
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Testing a feature by pushing it in different directions reveals its broader potential.
- In plain terms
- Try many variations of a feature to see how it can evolve.
- What can you take from it?
- Explore multiple angles to discover future uses.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- How do you decide which variations are worth testing?
- What criteria define a useful generalization?
Another view
Not all perturbations are useful; some may waste effort.
More from Larry Wall
I'm serious about thinking through all the possibilities before we settle on anything. All things have the advantages of their disadvantages, and vice versa.
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