Put Not Thy Trust In Programmers

Move content, and then DeleteMe - see ProgrammersAreNotProfessionals.

Over and again, we programmers will perform the wrong procedures with exacting correctness. Our programs are even worse. The Jewish Psalms say Put not thy trust in princes. Well, we're not even princes.

EditHint: I have suggested that this topic be delete-merged with ProgrammersAreNotProfessionals because it is too small to deserve its own topic. However, somebody appears to have disagreed. Let's discuss this.

The principle highlighted by the existence of this page is that one should not put trust in practitioners to fully, or even adequately practice their own disciplines. One might apply the "Trust but Verify" principle so emphasized by a former President of the UnitedStates. Those who would be skeptics and naysayers might lump all practitioners into the untrustworthy category, and in doing so cast out the water and then the pan. There are those who would believe that it is possible to trust the artifacts or practices of a practitioner when tested and verified to be trustworthy. A world or a discipline without trust is a sorry one indeed. But trust must have a basis. -- Corrected again DonaldNoyes 20070831

Is this not true of every worker? Why single-out programmers for such a statement? -- PeteHardie

They are not singled out. The word "practitioners", merely "includes" them under this broad classification. There are many other "disciplines" which one should not put unqualified "trust" in.

Then let us rename this page away from the specific stab at programmers, and aim it more generally --PeteHardie

How about PutNotThyTrustInHumans?. I was at first thinking "professionals", but it is human nature that causes the problems, not work by itself. Or even, PutNotThyTrustInMammals?. Or, VerificationIsUltimatelyYourOwnJob?. "Trust" is just a shortcut around digging in to check, and shortcuts create a degree of risk. The more you trust, the more risk you take on. View it as weighing tradeoffs of time versus risk rather than "people are bad". People are a mixed bag.