2 Welcome, New User!..................................................
Like Russian Roulette with Six Bullets
Loaded
Ken Thompson has an automobile which he helped design. Unlike
most automobiles, it has neither speedometer, nor gas gauge, nor
any of the other numerous idiot lights which plague the modern
driver. Rather, if the driver makes a mistake, a giant “?” lights up in
the center of the dashboard. “The experienced driver,” says Thomp-
son, “will usually know what’s wrong.”—AnonymousNew users of a computer system (and even seasoned ones) require a certain
amount of hospitality from that system. At a minimum, the gracious com-
puter system offers the following amenities to its guests:- Logical command names that follow from function
- Careful handling of dangerous commands
- Consistency and predictability in how commands behave and in how
they interpret their options and arguments - Easily found and readable online documentation
- Comprehensible and useful feedback when commands fail