a day ago
- Hackers and painters are both makers, creating things rather than conducting research or science.
- The term 'computer science' is misleading; hacking is more akin to art or engineering, not science.
- Hackers should design software through iterative sketching and refinement, similar to painters, rather than following rigid upfront specifications.
- Static typing and premature design can hinder creativity; programming languages should be malleable like a pencil.
- Startups allow hackers to design and implement products directly, avoiding the committee-driven design of large companies.
- Day jobs and open-source projects enable hackers to work on beautiful software on the side, following the model of other makers.
- Empathy is essential for hackers to understand users and create great software, just as painters must engage their audience.
- Learning to hack comes from doing and studying examples, like painters copying masters or writers paraphrasing essays.
- Great software requires relentless attention to detail and beauty, even in parts users never see.
- Collaboration in software should be modular with clear ownership, avoiding multiple people working on the same code.