When I listened to the take, my immediate thought was that he is operating in a different domain. He's doing 1) academics and 2) kernel in C. This is a different problem domain than you have in business programming. This might not be the right line of thinking but at the same time I always go back to automobiles... auto mechanic, truck mechanic, train mechanic, racecar mechanic. Each domain requires different tools and thinking. Yes basic principles apply. Torque, heat, basic electronics, etc. But there are vast differences at higher levels.
If, then. While. On/Off. Set theory. Loop nesting. Etc. All the basics apply in all domains of programming. But at higher levels...
I'd be curious about your thoughts regarding what Prof. Ousterhout says about TDD. My understanding is he thinks of design as being something that can happen only upfront, and TDD kills the opportunity to design by focusing on the most immediate, shortest step possible.
When I listened to the take, my immediate thought was that he is operating in a different domain. He's doing 1) academics and 2) kernel in C. This is a different problem domain than you have in business programming. This might not be the right line of thinking but at the same time I always go back to automobiles... auto mechanic, truck mechanic, train mechanic, racecar mechanic. Each domain requires different tools and thinking. Yes basic principles apply. Torque, heat, basic electronics, etc. But there are vast differences at higher levels.
If, then. While. On/Off. Set theory. Loop nesting. Etc. All the basics apply in all domains of programming. But at higher levels...
I'd be curious about your thoughts regarding what Prof. Ousterhout says about TDD. My understanding is he thinks of design as being something that can happen only upfront, and TDD kills the opportunity to design by focusing on the most immediate, shortest step possible.
Hello Kent,
I hope this communique finds you in a moment of stillness.
Have huge respect for your work, specially the unique, multidimensional reflections.
We’ve just opened the first door of something we’ve been quietly crafting for years—
A work not meant for markets, but for reflection and memory.
Not designed to perform, but to endure.
It’s called The Silent Treasury.
A place where judgment is kept like firewood: dry, sacred, and meant for long winters.
Where trust, patience, and self-stewardship are treated as capital—more rare, perhaps, than liquidity itself.
This first piece speaks to a quiet truth we’ve long sat with:
Why many modern PE, VC, Hedge, Alt funds, SPAC, and rollups fracture before they truly root.
And what it means to build something meant to be left, not merely exited.
It’s not short. Or viral. But it’s built to last.
And if it speaks to something you’ve always known but rarely seen expressed,
then perhaps this work belongs in your world.
The publication link is enclosed, should you wish to experience it.
https://helloin.substack.com/p/built-to-be-left?r=5i8pez
Warmly,
The Silent Treasury
A vault where wisdom echoes in stillness, and eternity breathes.
I listened to that interview and was curious about your take!