this post was submitted on 24 Jul 2023
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Programming

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Is software getting worse? (blog.ploeh.dk)
submitted 1 year ago by canpolat to c/programming
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[โ€“] canpolat 20 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I no longer look forward to updates.
[...]
It seems to me that some software is actually getting worse, and that this is a more recent trend.
[...]
Why does this happen? I don't know, but my own bias suggests that it's because there's less focus on regression testing. Many of the problems I see look like regression bugs to me. A good engineering team could have caught them with automated regression tests, but these days, it seems as though many teams rely on releasing often and then letting users do the testing.

The problem with that approach, however, is that if you don't have good automated tests, fixing one regression may resurrect another.

Every time I see a new update, I think: "I wonder what will break after this update" and postpone them as much as I can. Software updates shouldn't cause anxiety. But they do these days...

[โ€“] [email protected] 10 points 1 year ago

They used to cause anxiety in the past as well. But there was a window where - at least I - didn't fear them. Main reason why I still think they are necessary are security patches. But I do fear updates due to their tendency in breaking things.