I learned YAGNI early and used it proudly. It saved me from over engineering, and if I am honest, it also gave me a very convenient way to avoid a few uncomfortable design conversations. After a few systems, rewrites, and more than one “we’ll fix it later” moment, my relationship with YAGNI changed. This is a short, reflective take on where YAGNI genuinely helps, where it quietly hurts, and why thinking ahead is not the same as building ahead.
A feature can be completed once user start using it, but unless your user has started using your product you don't know the priority. For example the first iPhone was shipped without so many obvious features, even the basic clipboard functionalities were missing. But they quickly iterate over it and fix features that people wanted to get fixed.
Hi, I am the creator of the comics-strips 'cmd meltdown'.
Let me know if you have question or a funny command-line experience to share. Also suggestions for future strips are welcome too ;)
Bang on! 3 years back I twitted "if u r working 14 hrs a day, then possibilities r - either u building a Large Hadron Collider on ur own, or u r doing it awfully wrong" Guess what? It was a YC gradg & they hv never moved far!