The author pries open the gaps between reading code and literature quite effectively here and much of it resonates for me. In particular, the notion that when we look at idiomatic examples of coding concepts, while they are instructive, we are missing some essential context. And by looking at a complete program (with its attendant warts and blemishes) we are getting a slightly more honest version of reality, one that seems reasonable for even our own imperfect selves to inhabit. Having a guide that can brush away some of the dust and debris to reveal the supporting structure beneath is a great way to present a topic without simultaneously hiding from it. Rather than solemnly erected in a museum, we would see the bones where they fell, and perhaps learn something more subtle from their arrangement.
The author pries open the gaps between reading code and literature quite effectively here and much of it resonates for me. In particular, the notion that when we look at idiomatic examples of coding concepts, while they are instructive, we are missing some essential context. And by looking at a complete program (with its attendant warts and blemishes) we are getting a slightly more honest version of reality, one that seems reasonable for even our own imperfect selves to inhabit. Having a guide that can brush away some of the dust and debris to reveal the supporting structure beneath is a great way to present a topic without simultaneously hiding from it. Rather than solemnly erected in a museum, we would see the bones where they fell, and perhaps learn something more subtle from their arrangement.