Construction Quote by Niklaus Wirth
“Our ultimate goal is extensible programming. By this, we mean the construction of hierarchies of modules, each module adding new functionality to the system.”
About This Quote
Source Speech: Lecture on Programming Languages, Niklaus Wirth, 1972
The aim is to design software where new features can be added by stacking modules, each building on previous ones.
In simple terms: Build software so new parts can be added easily.
Key Takeaway
Design modular, extensible systems.
Themes
software design
modularity
scalability
Mood
analytical
optimistic
Type
technical
inspirational
When to use this quote
- large codebases
- framework development
- API design
- plugin ecosystems
Key Concepts
hierarchical architecture
abstraction
code reuse
Questions to Reflect On
- How can you keep module interfaces simple?
- When does adding a module hurt performance?
A Different Perspective
Complex hierarchies can become hard to understand and maintain.
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