> [!tldr] UNIX's version of [[The Zen of Python]], sort of There's 9 main ones, and 10 lesser ones. I'm not going to copy/paste the whole of the source, I highly recommend checking it out for more details. Instead here's the list and any relevant thoughts from me as indented bullets. ## Major Tenets 1. Small is beautiful 1. [[Modularity]]. [[Functions]]. 2. Make each program do one thing well. 1. [[Do the Simplest Thing]]. Nick Offerman's quote from my [[Be Selective]] note. [[Overhead]]. 3. Build a prototype as soon as possible. 1. [[Empirical]] results. [[Low-Cost Trials]]. [[Learn by Doing]]. 4. Choose portability over efficiency - i.e. make it easy to bring forward to better hardware 5. Store data and configuration info in flat [[Character Encoding|ASCII]] files 1. [[Plain Text Durability]]. 6. Use software leverage to your advantage - i.e. re-use code & learn the command line 1. [[Build On Yourself]] 7. Use shell scripts to increase leverage and portability 8. Avoid captive user interfaces - i.e. use things that allow you CLI access 1. e.g. [[Obsidian CLI]], [[Local LLMs]] 9. Make every program a filter - software modifies data, it doesn't create it 1. I'm not quite sure I buy this one ## Minor Tenets 1. Allow the user to tailor the environment. 1. again [[Obsidian]] 2. Make operating system kernels small and lightweight 1. again makes me think of the [[More is Unnecessary, Less is Impossible.|Perfect Tool]] 3. Use lower case and keep it short 1. i like the idea 4. Save trees - i.e. don't print data 5. Silence is golden - i.e. don't use `print('successfully did the thing great job!)` 6. Think parallel - i.e. most [[Defining Project|big tasks]] have small tasks can be parallelized 7. The sum of the parts is greater than the whole - i.e. many small things together beats one big thing 1. again [[Modularity]]. Avoiding vertical integration, I suppose? 8. Look for the 90% solution 1. [[Perfection is Dangerous]]. [[Pareto Principle]] 9. [[Worse is Better]] 1. I already had a note on this one 10. Think [[Hierarchy|hierarchically]] - i.e. hierarchies are more modular than complex [[Graph]]s **** # More ## Source - https://wiki.c2.com/?UnixDesignPhilosophy=&ref=ssp.sh -- via [[Other Bloggers|Simon Späti]]