Avoid success at all costs

[brokenhut]

There is a joke in the computing industry, with regard to bugs, of programming being like sex 1-“one mistake and you have to support it for the rest of your life”.

The talk given by Simon Peyton Jones on Haskell’s 15th birthday mentioned:

A smallish, rather pointy-headed user-base makes Haskell nimble. Haskell has evolved rapidly and continues to do so. Motto: avoid success at all costs

Organisations are reputed to become slower to adapt as they increase in size. Small is nimble.

In sex, in business or in programming: if you want to remain unencumbered, avoid success at all costs. Some people, though, go looking for success…

1. 
   I know what you’re thinking-how are programmers ever likely to know?
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