Steve McConnell
Steve McConnell
Steven C. McConnell is an author of software engineering textbooks such as Code Complete, Rapid Development, and Software Estimation. He is cited as an expert in software engineering and project management...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionAuthor
CountryUnited States of America
Steve McConnell quotes about
teamwork two failing
Software projects fail for one of two general reasons: the project team lacks the knowledge to conduct a software project successfully, or the project team lacks the resolve to conduct a project effectively.
simplicity elements movement
The default movement on a software project should be in the direction of taking elements of the software away to make it simpler rather than adding elements to make it more complex.
design force brutes
A brute force solution that works is better than an elegant solution that doesn't work.
teamwork hard-work people
Even when you have skilled, motivated, hard-working people, the wrong team structure can undercut their efforts instead of catapulting them to success. A poor team structure can increase development time, reduce quality, damage morale, increase turnover, and ultimately lead to project cancellation.
murder-mysteries able needs
It's OK to figure out murder mysteries, but you shouldn't need to figure out code. You should be able to read it.
motivation people stronger
Motivation is undoubtedly the single greatest influence on how well people perform. Most productivity studies have found that motivation has a stronger influence on productivity than any other factor.
opportunity missing use
In software, consultants sometimes tell you to buy into certain software-development methods to the exclusion of other methods. That’s unfortunate because if you buy into any single methodology 100 percent, you’ll see the whole world in terms of that methodology. In some instances, you’ll miss opportunities to use other methods better suited to your current problem.
fun heuristics algorithms
Heuristic is an algorithm in a clown suit. It’s less predictable, it’s more fun, and it comes without a 30-day, money-back guarantee.
mistake blanket biggest-mistake
A blanket attempt to avoid mistakes is the biggest mistake of all.
trying development formal
Trying to apply formal methods to all software projects is just as bad as trying to apply code-and-fix development to all projects.
mistake opportunity people
A typical software project can present more opportunities to learn from mistakes than some people get in a lifetime.
target purpose outcomes
The primary purpose of software estimation is not to predict a project's outcome; it is to determine whether a project's targets are realistic enough to allow the project to be controlled to meet them.
middle abstraction middle-ground
In my experience, you either have encapsulation and abstraction or you have neither. There is no middle ground.
computer language remains
95% on content and the computer language remains the same.