On Fri, Jun 29, 2018 at 11:42:36AM +0200, Jens Staal wrote: > Dear all, > > Do you have any reading suggestions (preferably academic papers, but > books might also work) in alignment with the "suckless philosophy" (or > "minimalism").
Paul Graham: Taste for Makers (http://www.paulgraham.com/taste.html) -- an essay about good design. Felix von Leitner: Writing Small And Fast Software (https://www.fefe.de/dietlibc/diet.pdf) -- slides for his talk where he introduces his lobowfat. The emphasis is on small software, but also on API design. In general, I suggest you browse through Dijkstra's writings: http://www.cs.utexas.edu/users/EWD/ > It does not have to be specifically programming, it could also be > engineering and design in general (art might be a stretch, but if you > know some good litterature in that field I am open to that too). In literature, Čechov was the ultimate champion of simplicity: > On Sept. 3, 1899, Chekhov gave his most prescriptive advice to Gorki, > a tip that influenced many 20th century writers like George Orwell and > teachers of the craft such as Strunk and White. > > "Here is more advice; when you read proof, [galley proofs publishers > provide authors for corrections, deletions and other changes] take out > adjectives and adverbs whenever you can. You use so many of them that > the reader finds it hard to concentrate and he gets tired. You > understand what I mean when I say, 'The man sat on the grass.' You > understand because the sentence is clear and there is nothing to > distract your attention. Conversely, the brain has trouble > understanding me if I say, 'A tall, narrow-chested man of medium > height with a red beard sat on green grass trampled by passers-by, sat > mutely, looking about timidly and fearfully.' This doesn't get its > meaning through to the brain immediately, which is what good writing > must do, and fast." https://www.poynter.org/news/writing-lessons-master-chekhov-writing-coach (Source) In music, take Bach's E-Major Fugue from the second volume of the Well Tempered Clavier. Here's Glenn Gould's commented interpretation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFOqX3JGERo This is just a random collection of things that spontaneously came to my mind on a sunday morning. Patrick
