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I'm not a real programmer. I throw together things until…

“I'm not a real programmer. I throw together things until it works then I move on. The real programmers will say Yeah it works but you're leaking memory everywhere. Perhaps we should fix that. I'll just restart Apache every 10 requests.” quote by Rasmus Lerdorf
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“I'm not a real programmer. I throw together things until it works then I move on. The real programmers will say Yeah it works but you're leaking memory everywhere. Perhaps we should fix that. I'll just restart Apache every 10 requests.”

Rasmus Lerdorf

About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The quote highlights a pragmatic, shortcut‑oriented coding style that prioritizes immediate functionality over long‑term quality, contrasting it with disciplined programmers who emphasize robustness and memory management.

In simple terms: Quick fixes over careful design.

Key Takeaway

Balance speed with code health.

Themes

software development pragmatism quality maintenance trade‑offs

Mood

pragmatic reflective

Type

advice cautionary

When to use this quote

  • product development
  • learning
  • hobby programming

Key Concepts

technical debt memory management system reliability

Questions to Reflect On

  • How do you decide when to refactor?
  • What are the costs of ignoring memory leaks?
A Different Perspective

Quick fixes may cause hidden failures later.

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