Category Archives: Influences and Inspirations

“Say what you mean. Bear witness. Iterate.”

Posted on April 20, 2012 by Karl

I went on an interesting journey online last night that led me to the source of the above phrase, a poem on mortality, entropy, memory… and databases. Yes, you read that right. I read Tor.com’s wonderful blog almost once a … Continue reading →

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A James Shore 2006 Post My Favorite Design Read So Far in 2012

Posted on February 19, 2012 by Karl

James Shore’s post in 2006, “Quality With a Name” summarizes clearly what I try and express and practice in my systems design work. This is something to not only read and bookmark, but print out to remind folks who are … Continue reading →

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For Whom The Bell Tolls

Posted on January 29, 2012 by Karl

The famous quoted passage from John Donne below has been brought up a few times the past few weeks. Here is the whole: “Meditation 17″: No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the … Continue reading →

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Alistar Croll: “much of human interaction has shifted from atoms to bits”

Posted on January 6, 2012 by Karl

Read his post on O’Reilly Radar: “The feedback economy”: In a society where every person, tethered to their smartphone, is both a sensor and an end node, we need better ways to observe and orient, whether we’re at home or … Continue reading →

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Steve Jobs: “computer science is a liberal art, it’s something everyone should know how to use, at least, and harness in their life”

Posted on November 27, 2011 by Karl

“Quotes from Steve Jobs Lost Interview”: “Learning to program teaches you how to think. Computer science is a liberal art.” NPR.org: “Steve Jobs: ‘Computer Science Is A Liberal Art’”: “In my perspective … science and computer science is a liberal … Continue reading →

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Dizzying but invisible depth: on complexity

Posted on October 22, 2011 by Karl

Jean-Baptiste Queru, on his Google+ profile, posts a poetic and doozy of a post, “Dizzying but invisible depth”: Today’s computers are so complex that they can only be designed and manufactured with slightly less complex computers. In turn the computers … Continue reading →

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Impermanence and Software Design: on systems

Posted on October 9, 2011 by Karl

When you’re building software, it is probably best to look at things half-Buddhist. Kent Beck writes about building software that won’t be around longer than him in a recent Facebook note: …nothing I am doing now with software will remain … Continue reading →

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On People, Process, and Passion and Persistence

Posted on October 6, 2011 by Karl

My boss back at Bell Atlantic, who became my friend and mentor, Pat Trongo, had the following quote from Peter Senge’s “The Fifth Discipline” on his cube wall in big bold letters. I found it inspirational back then. But now … Continue reading →

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On ever growing complexity in programming: on systems

Posted on October 2, 2011 by Karl

Edsger W. Dijkstra gave a lecture, in 1972, that has since been come to be called “The Humble Programmer”. It’s a short piece that explains why software development, why programming, was growing more, not less complex over time, and some … Continue reading →

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On Making and Working Towards Big Things: on innovation

Posted on October 1, 2011 by Karl

Wondering why we’re living in an age of ever increasing decreased expectations? You are not alone. Author Neal Stephenson wrote a thought provoking must read for World Policy Institute titled, “Innovation Starvation”: The imperative to develop new technologies and implement … Continue reading →

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