
Building a Cathedral - bookofjoe
https://theprepared.org/features/2019/4/28/building-a-cathedral
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wallflower
See also: the brilliant illustrator David Macaulay's glorious "how-to" book.

[https://www.amazon.com/Cathedral-Story-Construction-David-
Ma...](https://www.amazon.com/Cathedral-Story-Construction-David-
Macaulay/dp/0395316685)

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stcredzero
This book is one of the childhood books that made me who I am today. I also
had Pyramid and City.

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matthewmcg
Don't forget _The Way Things Work_!

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cr0sh
I'm not sure of it's historical accuracy, or if the author took some liberties
with the subject at hand, but one of my favorite works of fiction on the
"building of a cathedral" is Ken Follett's "The Pillars of the Earth". If you
haven't read it, you may be as surprised by it as I was...

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johncalvinyoung
Wish there was less 'adult' content in it, I'd recommend it more widely. As it
is, it's one of the few books I've thrown out, and I recommend David
Macaulay's Cathedral instead. :/

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sevensor
So the key points of the essay -- cathedrals are accretions of effort over
time, no cathedral is ever finished -- do they apply to software? And do they
apply more to cathedral-structured projects than to bazaar-structured
projects? I'm perhaps more drawn to this metaphor than I should be; I think
I'm still trying to make up my mind about whether it's really useful, and to
what extent.

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wallflower
> cathedrals are accretions of effort over time, no cathedral is ever finished

The basic premise of "How Buildings Learn" by Stewart Brand, co-founder of The
WELL, is that the better buildings are those that can and may adapt to
different purposes over their life span. Like they say, 'this home has good
bones' if the house has good infrastructure and structure. This can also be
obviously applied to software construction.

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_Buildings_Learn](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_Buildings_Learn)

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sevensor
Interesting notion! It puts me in mind of Levittown. All houses followed an
original standard design (or three), but if you go there today, no two are
alike. Originally derided as the paragon of uniformity, each house in
Levittown has grown and changed to suit its owners.

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jackbravo
any link with more information about Levittown?

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sevensor
This is the Levittown I'm talking about:

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Levittown,_Pennsylvania](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Levittown,_Pennsylvania)

This song distills the low regard in which it was held.

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Boxes](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Boxes)

My comment is based on visits to Levittown -- a friend of mine grew up there.

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schoen
Though note that "Little Boxes" originally refers to Daly City, California
(you can see them when riding BART to or from SFO).

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sevensor
I did not know that. Thank you!

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inetsee
This is a fascinating web site. I was particularly impressed by the section
labeled "Tool Guide".

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pencerw
<3 thanks!

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HocusLocus
"Cathedrals are unfinished. It is just the nature of the beast"

Always mis-read 'beast' as 'breast' in literature. It gladdens your heart and
puts a great spin on everything.

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HocusLocus
An irreverent remark on Hacker News! Attack! Attack!

