Books Quote by Dijkstra
““My point today is that, if we wish to count lines of code, we should not regard them as "lines produced" but as "lines spent": the current conventional wisdom is so foolish as to book that count on the wrong side of the ledger.””
About This Quote
Source Article: Structured Programming, Edsger Dijkstra, 1972
Code should be measured by effort spent, not lines produced, to avoid misleading metrics.
In simple terms: Count effort, not lines.
Key Takeaway
Focus on effort over line count.
Themes
software development
productivity
metrics
Mood
analytical
critical
Type
technical
philosophical
When to use this quote
- code reviews
- project estimation
- team performance
Key Concepts
software engineering
efficiency
Questions to Reflect On
- How can teams track real effort?
- What alternatives to line count exist?
A Different Perspective
Effort is hard to quantify precisely.
