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                        The beauty of finished software

   October 31, 2023

   Let me introduce you to [6]WordStar 4.0, a popular word processor from
   the early 80s.

   Wordstar 4.0 WordStar 4.0

   As old as it seems, George R.R. Martin used it to write “A Song of Ice
   and Fire”.

   Why would someone use such an old piece of software to write over 5,000
   pages? I love how he puts it:

     It does everything I want a word processing program to do and it
     doesn't do anything else. I don't want any help. I hate some of
     these modern systems where you type up a lowercase letter and it
     becomes a capital. I don't want a capital, if I'd wanted a capital,
     I would have typed the capital.[7]George R.R. Martin

   This program embodies the concept of finished software — a software you
   can use forever with no unneeded changes.

   Finished software is software that’s not expected to change, and that’s
   a feature! You can rely on it to do some real work.

   Once you get used to the software, once the software works for you, you
   don’t need to learn anything new; the interface will exactly be the
   same, and all your files will stay relevant. No migrations, no new
   payments, no new changes.

   This kind of software can be created intentionally, with a compromise
   from the creators that they won’t bother you with things you don’t
   need, and only the absolutely necessary will change, like minor updates
   to make it compatible with new operating systems.

   Sometimes, finished software happens accidentally; maybe the company
   behind it has disappeared, or the product has been abandoned.

   There are also some great examples in the UNIX world of finished
   software: commands like cd(to change the current directory) or ls(to
   list what’s there) won’t ever change in a significant way. You can rely
   on them until the end of your career.

The seduction of constant updates

   Our expectations for software are different from other products we use
   in our daily lives.

   When we buy a physical product, we accept that it won’t change in its
   lifetime. We’ll use it until it wears off, and we replace it. We can
   rely on that product not evolving; the gas pedal in my car will always
   be in the same place.

   However, when it comes to software, we usually have the ingrained
   expectations of perpetual updates. We believe that if software doesn’t
   evolve it’ll be boring, old and unusable. If we see an app with no
   updates in the last year, we think the creator might be dead.

   We also expect new versions of any software will be better than the
   previous ones. Once it’s released, most of our problems will be solved!
   What a deceiving lie.

   Sometimes, a software upgrade is a step backward: less usable, less
   stable, with new bugs. Even if it’s genuinely better, there’s the
   learning curve. You were efficient with the old version, but now your
   most used button is on the other side of the screen under a hidden
   menu.

Finished software is a good reminder

   In a world where constant change is the norm, finished software
   provides a breath of fresh air. It’s a reminder that reliability,
   consistency, and user satisfaction can coexist in the realm of software
   development.

   So the next time you find yourself yearning for the latest update,
   remember that sometimes, the best software is the one that doesn’t
   change at all.
     __________________________________________________________________

References

   [1] George R.R. Martin in Conan show (2014).
   [8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5REM-3nWHg.

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