May 28, 2015

The Wrong Kind of Paranoia

  —A look at const-correctness and software architecture.

I tend to be pedantic in my approach to coding C++. I like const, I declare access to data members private. A wider view is presented in The Wrong Kind of Paranoia.

I don't interpret this discussion as an argument against writing code like I do. I interpret it as a wider discussion on how important it is to look at the quality attributes you want from your architecture.

Using one example in the article, safety is a quality attribute that you want the architecture to provide and that's why you separate the code that irradiates patients from the user interface. I agree with James: programming in the small will not address this type of architectural issue.

In all, the main take away I get from James' point is that programming in the small is part of the solution but don't loose sight of the architecture. If you do, none of the const data you create will make any difference whatsoever.