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選擇無聊的技術:創新與穩定的權衡 Embracing Boring Technology: A Balance Between Innovation and Stability

/ 3 min read

最近看到一篇有趣的文章 Choose Boring Technology

這篇文章的作者 Dan McKinley 提出了許多,我在實際工作中同樣有的感受,其實最早是看到有好心人翻譯了演講版本的文章,不過我習慣先閱讀原文的寫法,了解一下作者的 idea

文章一開始談到 “Innovation Tokens”,我覺得有趣的是這段敘述

but the general tendency is to overestimate the contents of your wallet.

這蠻貼切點出了,現實中很多決策者,對於成本掌握的過度樂觀。

中間還有說到對於引入新技術的部分

consider how you would solve your immediate problem without adding anything new.

這也是我常常在思考的部分,如何在不引進新技術時解決這個問題,不能身陷在為用而用的死局中,這所欠下的技術債 (cognitive complexity) 在未來極有可能變成還不了的高利貸。

最後還是回到了,到底想要解決的問題是什麼?目標是什麼?

write down exactly what it is about the current stack that makes solving the problem prohibitively expensive and difficult

當只有理解問題的本質時,我們才可能跳脫出選用新舊技術的框架中,其實問題的關鍵在

the ultimate goal should always be to deliver value to the business.

心得 Conclusion

當我們審慎選擇技術, 工程師便能將精力集中於更重要的大問題, 而不是被新穎且未經試驗的技術,所帶來的維護難題所牽絆。

Mindful technology choices allows engineers to focus on bigger, more important issues, rather than being bogged down by the operational challenges that new, unproven technology might present.

推薦看看作者的演講版本,中間有把整個 context 交代得很完整

補充經典的一句

Happiness comes from shipping stuff.