--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Anyone can write a specification, but if…" description: "\"Anyone can write a specification, but if nobody implements it, what is it but a particularly dry form of science fiction.\" — Ian Hickson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90b/ian-hickson-105086_dry_anyone-can-write-a-specification-but-if_2413929.jpg" --- # Anyone can write a specification, but if nobody implements… ![“Anyone can write a specification, but if nobody implements it, what is it but a particularly dry form of science fiction.” quote by Ian Hickson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90b/ian-hickson-105086_dry_anyone-can-write-a-specification-but-if_2413929.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90b/ian-hickson-105086_dry_anyone-can-write-a-specification-but-if_2413929.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90b/ian-hickson-105086_dry_anyone-can-write-a-specification-but-if_2413929.jpg) > “Anyone can write a specification, but if nobody implements it, what is it but a particularly dry form of science fiction.” Ian Hickson ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A specification is meaningless without implementation, resembling dry science fiction. **In simple terms:** Specs need implementation to matter. Key Takeaway Ensure specs can implementation. Themes software specifications implementation theory practicality Mood practical thoughtful Type dry:1 fiction:1 form:0 ifs:0 science:1 science fiction:1 specifications:1 writing:0 specification:0 dry form:0 write specification:0 specification implements:0 When to use this quote - coding projects - product design - technical documentation Key Concepts engineering project management software development Questions to Reflect On - How to bridge theory and practice? A Different Perspective What makes a spec useful? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Science fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science-fiction/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [“A specification is a clear and concise but complete description of the exact item desired so that all vendors have a common basis for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruby-parker-puckett/a-specification-is-a-clear-and-concise-but-complete-description-of/) [Ruby Parker Puckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruby-parker-puckett/) > [In programming, it’s often the buts in the specification that kill you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-beizer/in-programming-it-s-often-the-buts-in-the-specification-that-kill-you/) [Boris Beizer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-beizer/) > [A cry is only a dry form of somebodys try to fly to reach high.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anuj-somany/a-cry-is-only-a-dry-form-of-somebodys-try-to-fly-to-reach-high/) [Anuj Somany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anuj-somany/) > [“This specification should be read like all other specifications. First, it should be read cover-to-cover, multiple times. Then, it should be read backwards at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-specification-should-be-read-like-all-other-specifications-first/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The item may be selected from a manufacturer’s or equipment supplier’s catalog rather than by writing a detailed specification.Δ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruby-parker-puckett/the-item-may-be-selected-from-a-manufacturer-s-or-equipment-supplier/) [Ruby Parker Puckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruby-parker-puckett/) > [“software to specification. For the project to deliver what the customer needs requires a correct specification. Additionally, the delivered system must meet the specification.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/software-to-specification-for-the-project-to-deliver-what-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The quality desired, style, number of chips per pound, and total weight of the container should be included in a specification for butter.Δ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruby-parker-puckett/the-quality-desired-style-number-of-chips-per-pound-and-total-weight/) [Ruby Parker Puckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruby-parker-puckett/) > [I have come to believe that large print, thick and heavy paper, and wide margins and oversize leading is indicative of the expected intelligence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-naggum/i-have-come-to-believe-that-large-print-thick-and-heavy-paper-and/) [Erik Naggum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-naggum/) > [Mathematics as a science, commenced when first someone, probably a Greek, proved propositions about "any" things or about "some" things, without specifications of definite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/mathematics-as-a-science-commenced-when-first-someone-probably-a/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [I was always on time, I did my work to exact specifications, I spoke when spoken to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-patchett/i-was-always-on-time-i-did-my-work-to-exact-specifications-i-spoke/) [Ann Patchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-patchett/) > [I've learned about the inflation range situation. Obviously with our footballs being inflated to the 12.5-pound range, any deflation would then take us under…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-belichick/i-ve-learned-about-the-inflation-range-situation-obviously-with-our/) [Bill Belichick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-belichick/) > [We must define quality as conformance to specifications if we are to manage it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-crosby/we-must-define-quality-as-conformance-to-specifications-if-we-are-to/) [Phil Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-crosby/) > [You can't exactly bake a man to your specifications. Most of all, one shouldn't alienate a candidate. A hybrid of Einstein, Tarzan and Inge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peer-steinbruck/you-can-t-exactly-bake-a-man-to-your-specifications-most-of-all-one/) [Peer Steinbruck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peer-steinbruck/) > [To try to be happy is to try to build a machine with no other specification than that it shall run noiselessly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-robert-oppenheimer/to-try-to-be-happy-is-to-try-to-build-a-machine-with-no-other/) [J. Robert Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-robert-oppenheimer/) > [Kantian ethical theory distinguishes three levels: First, that of a fundamental principle (the categorical imperative, formulated in three main ways in Kant's Groundwork); second,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-w-wood/kantian-ethical-theory-distinguishes-three-levels-first-that-of-a/) [Allen W. Wood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-w-wood/) ## More by Ian Hickson > [Things that are impossible just take longer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-hickson/things-that-are-impossible-just-take-longer/) Ian Hickson Explore all 2 Ian Hickson quotes ## More Dry quotes > [Meanwhile someone is shining my head to get it dry to attach my top-hat to my head with toupee tape. I get into microphone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tituss-burgess/meanwhile-someone-is-shining-my-head-to-get-it-dry-to-attach-my-top/) [Tituss Burgess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tituss-burgess/) > [If a woman hasn't got a tiny streak of a harlot in her, she's a dry stick as a rule.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-a-woman-hasn-t-got-a-tiny-streak-of-a-harlot-in-her-she-s-a-dry/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [ When the fountains of government \[borrowing\] abundance began to dry up, when through lack of funds and the impossibility of negotiating fresh loans the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-t-flynn/when-the-fountains-of-government-borrowing-abundance-began-to-dry-up/) [John T. Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-t-flynn/) > [Maybe that was why she couldn't cry, she realized, staring dry-eyed at the ceiling. Because what was the point in crying when there was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/maybe-that-was-why-she-couldn-t-cry-she-realized-staring-dry-eyed-at/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [He will hear the rain before he feels it, a clicking on the dry grass, on the olive leaves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/he-will-hear-the-rain-before-he-feels-it-a-clicking-on-the-dry-grass/) [Michael Ondaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/) > [“The cactus thrives in the desert while the fern thrives in the wetland. The fool will try to plant them in the same flowerbox.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/the-cactus-thrives-in-the-desert-while-the-fern-thrives-in-the/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [I had my first French meal and I never got over it. It was just marvelous. We had oysters and a lovely dry white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-child/i-had-my-first-french-meal-and-i-never-got-over-it-it-was-just/) [Julia Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-child/) > [If lawyers are disbarred and clergymen defrocked, doesn't it follow that electricians can be delighted, musicians denoted, cowboys deranged, models deposed, tree surgeons debarked,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wright/if-lawyers-are-disbarred-and-clergymen-defrocked-doesn-t-it-follow/) [Steven Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wright/) > [I separated the joints, the arm joints, the leg joints, and had to do two boilings. I think I used four boxes of Soilex…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-dahmer/i-separated-the-joints-the-arm-joints-the-leg-joints-and-had-to-do/) [Jeffrey Dahmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-dahmer/) > [I had rather be a Kitten, and cry mew, Than one of these same Meeter Ballad-mongers: I had rather heare a Brazen Candlestick turn'd,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/i-had-rather-be-a-kitten-and-cry-mew-than-one-of-these-same-meeter/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [The trees change their voices in autumn as well as their shapes. No longer do they whisper to one another in muffled tones as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patience-strong/the-trees-change-their-voices-in-autumn-as-well-as-their-shapes-no/) [Patience Strong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patience-strong/) > [Sometimes change came all at once, with a sound like a fire taking hold of dry wood and paper, with a roar that rose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/sometimes-change-came-all-at-once-with-a-sound-like-a-fire-taking/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [While traveling, I love granola bars, trail mix nuts, dry cereal and fruit for on-the-go snacks. I also try and start the day with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christie-rampone/while-traveling-i-love-granola-bars-trail-mix-nuts-dry-cereal-and/) [Christie Rampone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christie-rampone/) > [Is there some lesson on how to be friends? I think what it means is that central to living a life that is good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-rakoff/is-there-some-lesson-on-how-to-be-friends-i-think-what-it-means-is/) [David Rakoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-rakoff/) > [I can do this thing called the 'eyebrow wave,' where I can move my eyebrows in a...wave-ular motion, whatever you call it. I feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-justice/i-can-do-this-thing-called-the-eyebrow-wave-where-i-can-move-my/) [Victoria Justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-justice/) Browse all 1,339 Dry quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Anyone can write a specification, but if nobody implements it, what is it but a particularly dry form of science fiction.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ian Hickson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-hickson/anyone-can-write-a-specification-but-if-nobody-implements-it-what-is/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Dry" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-hickson/anyone-can-write-a-specification-but-if-nobody-implements-it-what-is/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90b/ian-hickson-105086_dry_anyone-can-write-a-specification-but-if_2413929.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90b/ian-hickson-105086_dry_anyone-can-write-a-specification-but-if_2413929.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90b/ian-hickson-105086_dry_anyone-can-write-a-specification-but-if_2413929.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Anyone can write a specification, but if nobody implements it, what is it but a particularly dry form of…” — Ian Hickson", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Ian Hickson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-hickson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Anyone can write a specification, but...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-hickson/anyone-can-write-a-specification-but-if-nobody-implements-it-what-is/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-hickson/anyone-can-write-a-specification-but-if-nobody-implements-it-what-is/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```