Linus Torvalds Outburst Sparks Fierce Debate: Does Open Source Software Need Specs?

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

> TechNews wrote:
>
> "Linus Torvalds Outburst Sparks Fierce Debate: Does Open Source  
> Software
> Need Specs?"
> SYS-CON (10/03/05)
>
> In a recent posting on the Linux Kernel Mailing List, Linus Torvalds
> blasted specs as a method for developing software, claiming they  
> pay more
> attention to theory than reality and introduce a needless level of
> abstraction that often falls flat when put into practice. Torvalds  
> cited
> the OSI network model protocols, which he characterized as "classic
> spec-design, which had absolutely zero relevance for the real  
> world." He
> admitted that specs could serve as a useful framework for  
> discussion, but
> that they should have no bearing on the actual design. Feedback to
> Torvalds' posting was varied, as some immediately took him to task,
> insisting that specs, like actual code, were by definition  
> approximations,
> while others supported his view that their use is limited. One  
> respondent
> noted that many original Unix specs were quite good, while later  
> standards
> such as HTML and SOAP were well-written, but ultimately functioned  
> poorly
> due to sloppy designs. One post criticized Torvalds for being too  
> narrow
in

> his definition, claiming that his view of a spec as an unchanging  
> template
> incapable of adapting throughout the development process is not  
> held by
> anyone in the industry. Another reader claimed specs are essential to
> commercial projects, as they serve essentially as a contract,  
> defining the
> scope and function of a given body of code. By way of mediation, one
> respondent sought to clarify Torvalds' position by arguing against the
> misconception that programs can be written through the progressive
revision

> of specifications, when really specs are useful insofar as they can  
> guide
a

> discussion, but must yield to technical requirements as the  
> development
> process unfolds.



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