All Alan Perlis Quotes
- When someone says, "I want a programming language in which I need only say what I want done," give him a lollipop. Done Give
- The computing field is always in need of new cliches. Cliche
- It is better to have 100 functions operate on one data structure than to have 10 functions operate on 10 data structures. Better
- There are two ways to write error-free programs; only the third one works. Computer
- FORTRAN is not a flower but a weed - it is hardy, occasionally blooms, and grows in every computer. Blooms
- Simplicity does not precede complexity, but follows it. Complexity
- In computing, turning the obvious into the useful is a living definition of the word "frustration". Computing
- If your computer speaks English, it was probably made in Japan. Computer
- I think it is inevitable that people program poorly. Training will not substantially help matters. We have to learn to live with it. Help
- Is it possible that software is not like anything else, that it is meant to be discarded: that the whole point is to always see… Always See
- A good programming language is a conceptual universe for thinking about programming. Conceptual
- A language that doesn't affect the way you think about programming is not worth knowing. Affect
- Any noun can be verbed. Any
- I think that it's extraordinarily important that we in computer science keep fun in computing. When it started out, it was an awful lot of… Awful
- It goes against the grain of modern education to teach students to program. What fun is there to making plans, acquiring discipline, organizing thoughts, devoting… Acquiring
- Optimization hinders evolution. Evolution
- To understand a program, you must become both the machine and the program. Both
- You think you KNOW when you learn, are more sure when you can write, even more when you can teach, but certain when you can… Certain
- Every program has (at least) two purposes: the one for which it was written and another for which it wasn't. Computing
- Don't have good ideas if you aren't willing to be responsible for them. Computing