Agile Software Development
Автор: Alistair Cockburn /
APPENDIX B: Naur, Ehn, Musashi Musashi
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Часть 1
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Miyamoto Musashi was a 17th century samurai who never wrote software.
He claimed never to have lost a fight. Of course, in those days, losing a fight was linked with some serious body damage, and so being alive with all limbs in place at the age of 70 makes his claim quite believable.
There are two notable books about Musashi. One is a romantic novel series, called "Musashi, " which portrays his early life and development, including fights. It is a wonderful read, and also describes his fighting approach.
The other was written by him, late in life: The Book of Five Rings, or Go Rin No Sho (I have the Thomas Cleary translation, Shambala, 1994). It outlines his approach to fighting: specific individual moves, directiing large groups, and mental states. It is short, clear, and wonderfully absent of the usual Zen doubletalk ("Be by not being, fight by not fighting, win by losing" and so on).
Why Musashi here? Because of three characteristics that his fghting technique has with the development recommendations I give in this book and apply myself: Do not develop an attachment to any one weapon or any one school of fighting; Practice and observe reflectively Your goal is to win, not to look good.
At the time of his writing, warriors formed schools around particular stances, styles, weapons and tactics. His view was that each had its merits and weaknesses, and one should move across the range of them without getting stuck in any one. This is exactly my thoght regarding design techniques. Don't get stuck in UML, RUP, CMM, SEI, XP, CRC (insert your favorite school, tool or acronym here). Use whichever you need at the instant you need it. Know what you need, so you know which one to pick up and when to put it down.
Reflective practice has been discussed throughout this book.
Winning the software development game is shipping the software. If you can do so without process, do so. My favorite-ever recommendation to a group was,
"What? You only have a five-week project with three developers who have done this before, with the same technology? You don't need a development coordinator - just do it and go home. "
Musashi said, "Do not do anything useless. " Musashi cared about winning the game, which in his case was life-or-death. I am attached to delivering the software. The prettiness of the dance doesn't matter if the software comes out at the wrong time.
Let's see how Musashi says it. Notice even his attention to the Shu-Ha-Ri concept, and development of skill. Keep in mind at all times that the "opponent" in software development is the problem to be solved. "Killing the opponent" is delivering the software and winning the game. Here are some of his words (or Cleary's translation of them).
"The Book of Five Rings" (Page numbers from Barnes Noble 1993. )
1. Now, in composing this book, I have not borrowed the old saying of Buddhism or Confucianism, nor do I make use of old stories from military records or books on military science. ..
2. The field of martial arts is particularly rife with flambouyant showmanship, with commercial popularization and profiteering on the part of both those who teach the science and those who study it. The result of this must be, as someone said, that "amateuristic martial arts are a source of serious wounds. ". ..
3. The master carpenter, knowing the measurements and designsof all sorts of structures, employs people to build houses. In this respect, the master carpenter is the same as the master warrior. .. . As the master carpenter directs the journeymen, he knows their various levels of skill and gives them appropirate tasks. .. Efficiency and smooth progress, prudence in all matters, recognizing true courage, recognizing different levels of morale, instilling confidence, and realizing what can and cannot be reasonably expected -- such are the matters on the mind of the master carpenter. The principle of martial arts is like this. ..
4. Speaking in terms of carpentry, soldiers sharpen their own tools, make various useful implments, and keep thim in their utility boxes. .. An essential habit for carpenters is to have sharp tools and keep them whetted. ..
5. You should observe reflectively, with overall awareness of the large picture as well as precise attention to small details. ..
6. Having attained a principle, one detaches from the principle; thus one has spontaneous independence in the science of martial arts and naturally attains marvels: discerning the rhythm when the time comes, one strikes spontaneously and naturally scores. ..
7. In my individual school, one can win with the long sword, and one can win with the short sword as well. For this reason, the precise size of the sword is not fixed. The way of my school is the spirit of gaining victory by any means. ..
8. When your life is on the line, you want to make use of all your tools. .. We find that whatever the weapon, there is a time and situation in which it is appropriate. .. Both the spear and the halberd depend on circumstances; neither is very useful in crowded situations. .. they should be reserved for use on the battlefield. .. [the bow] is inadequate for seiging a castle. ..
9. In the present age, not only the bow but also the other arts have more flowers than fruit. Such skills are useless where there is a real need. ..
10. You should not have any particular fondness for a particular weapon, or anything else for that matter. Too much is the same as not enough. .. Pragmatic thinking is essential. ..
11. Whatever guard you adopt, do not think of it as being on guard; think of it as part of the act of killing. ..
12. Whether you adopt a large or small guard depends on the situation; follow whatever is most advantageous. ..
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