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Erik Naggum Quotes

1965–2009 Norway

Erik Naggum (June 13, 1965 – June 17, 2009) was a Lisp programmer.

Norway
Programmers

Also known as: Naggum

Random Erik Naggum quote

84 quotes

Languages shape the way we think, or don't.

Structure is nothing if it is all you got. Skeletons spook people if they try to walk around on their own. I really wonder why XML does not.

C++ is a language strongly optimized for liars and people who go by guesswork and ignorance.

The only way to improve your work or life is by understanding and examining why you do what you do.

A system needs to be alive and workable even when other people than the first enthusiasts start using it. Reinvention and revolution are enthusiast stuff. Invention and evolution are engineering.

If you want to know why Lisp doesn't win around you, find a mirror.

If this is not what you expected, please alter your expectations.

If the syntax is good enough for the information, it should be good enough for the meta-information.

I'm bothered by the fact that stupid people don't spontaneously combust, which they should.

Like so many other things in life, you rarely get only what you optimize for.

Unfortunately, nigh the whole world is now duped into thinking that silly fill-in forms on web pages is the way to do user interfaces.

Is it still "artificial intelligence" when the task is to model human stupidity, or would only preventing its devastating consequences get an "AI" rating?

The only important property of evils of the past is that they not be repeated in the future, in any way, shape, or form.

Note that ANSI standards also cost way too much compared to toilet paper, and they're pretty bad quality as toilet paper goes, too.

The very word "exist" derives from "to step forth, to stand out".

What I actually admire in Perl is its ability to provide a very successful abstraction of the horrible mess that is collectively called Unix.

If Perl is the solution, you're solving the wrong problem.

The currency in the developer community is enthusiasm.

Enlightenment is probably antithetical to impatience.

I believe that structure is a product, not a process.

Attribution

Quotes and notes from Wikiquote: Erik Naggum (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0.