Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!ut-emx!tivoli!alan
From: alan@tivoli.UUCP (Alan R. Weiss)
Newsgroups: comp.software-eng
Subject: Re: Second System Effect
Message-ID: <423@tivoli.UUCP>
Date: 25 Feb 91 23:51:17 GMT
References: <30512@mimsy.umd.edu>
Reply-To: alan@tivoli.UUCP (Alan R. Weiss)
Organization: Tivoli Systems Inc., Austin, TX
Lines: 50

In article <30512@mimsy.umd.edu> dalamb@umiacs.umd.edu (David Lamb) writes:
>In "The Mythical Man-Month", Fred Brooks (1975) described the "second system
>effect": on one's second try at a particular kind of system, one tends
>to add all kinds of bells, whistles, kazoos, etc., vastly
>overcomplicating the software.  When I first read it, this seemed like
>it had to be true, but I haven't seen anyone else discussing it.  Does
>anyone else have any published references discussing such an effect?
>Do y'all believe it's still a problem these days?
>
>--
>
>David Alex Lamb				internet: dalamb@umiacs.umd.edu


I have read The Project Manager's Bible (also known as The Mythical
Man Month), and yea verily I may speak of heresy, but what the hell,
here goes:

In my experience the FIRST system is an enormous compendium of features
and functions that, sadly, must be whittled down to meer epic/heroic
proportions to meet the first release's aggressive schedule (owing no
doubt to the supplier of capital's desires to see some payback).

My OTHER experience is that often the first system MUST be thrown
away, but often is not because:

	a.  It seems to work OK
	b.  Those damn schedules again!  Lets ship *something*
	c.  We can fix it all up later.

Unfortunately, we often find that fixing it later is a nightmare,
because that "little demo" was hacked and kludged in a big hurry.
It should be obliterated, but instead the belief is that "we can
fix the bugs."  No specifications, no design, pure energy.  Like
an atomic bomb is pure destructive energy awaiting its destiny,
these little bombs wait for the future, where they explode into
support and maintenance horrors.

Graphic, aren't I?

:-)


_______________________________________________________________________
Alan R. Weiss                           TIVOLI Systems, Inc.
E-mail: alan@tivoli.com                 6034 West Courtyard Drive,
E-mail: alan@whitney.tivoli.com         Suite 210
Voice : (512) 794-9070                  Austin, Texas USA  78730
Fax   : (512) 794-0623
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