Okay, that’s a bit strong, but it got your attention. In truth, I think design patterns are very useful things. They can aid in understanding software design, for documenting and communicating design, and for applying to or refactoring designs; but many people see them as something more. I saw a consulting job requirement a while ago, and one of the required skills was that the candidate “must have used ALL of the design patterns” documented in the GoF Book. Is this really significantly different than requiring that a building architect has applied every form of archway and flying butress ever used in the history of construction? Isn’t awareness more important than past application?
This kind of thinking entirely misses some of the primary points of the book; that the design patterns given were derived from observations of recurring patterns in software, and that it’s a non-exhaustive list. Like any other tool of design, design patterns can be misapplied to create bad software, and I’ve seen it happen. They can introduce unnecessary complexity, or to remove it. The ability to select an appropriate pattern in meeting a need is far more important than whether an individual has used them or not.
I can only imagine how such a requirement was decided… Some respected developer bemoans the lack of pattern knowledge to a manager, who knows the buzzwords, and maybe even reads the book. The manager in turn decides that this is an ideal, quantifiable measure of developer skill, and behold, a new job requirement is born!
Perhaps a better requirement would have been that the individual has avoided the use of any of the anti-patterns documented in the AntiPatterns Book for at least 5 years; or perhaps, if design patterns is the point, that he had discovered and documented previously unrealized patterns in some development context. Then at least you’d have some idea that he truly understood design patterns. Still it seems like a pretty superficial measure of the skill of a developer. I think I see an anti-pattern developing here.
Max is a father, a husband, and a man of many interests. He is also a consulting software architect with over 3 decades experience in the design and implementation of complex software. View his Linked-In profile at http://www.linkedin.com/pro/swarchitect |
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