Geek Answers Handbook

Nameless Quality Examples (QWAN)?

Quality Without a Name (QWAN) is Christopher Alexander's term for an attractive feature that is not exactly “beauty” or “comfort” or “liveliness” or any other term. But what can we recognize in buildings.

For those who have the most influence on thinking based on Alexander’s templates, we probably think we can see it in the software: either for end users, or as a software architecture or a well-developed API.

So what are your favorite QWAN examples and why?

+4
source share
2 answers

Smalltalk So much you need in a programming language in such small constructions

+2
source

If we are talking about design, then the ability to customize, expand or redefine the original behavior with minimal changes would be what I find attractive. Some, however, argue that this attribute of quality has a name: maintainability.

However, from a pure abstract perspective of software architecture, I would say that the ability to easily induce in your mind an isomorphism between a particular architecture and the intended domain / target is a quality without a name.

+1
source

More articles:


All Articles