Published 2024-09-30
tag(s): #pic #programming #nyc
It isn't the tallest building, and it isn't the most impressive, finely decorated, or anything like that. But it always catches my eye.
Why I like it so much? First, there's elegance to it. Glass framed like that is not
particularly novel, but rarely it looks bad.
So it could be the most unassuming building in the skyline, but the way it goes at the top
into uneven sides, it gives it personality, without breaking the line of what came before it.
Keeps the same distinct features (which we established are not very distinct), but gives them
a new spin.
The result is something that looks either somewhat unfinished, or like it wasn't all that planned. Or maybe like at some point the plan changed, and they had to finish it anyway, so it is functional but not perfectly symmetric.
And there lies the connection to software that "sparks joy"[1] for me. A solid foundation, not too flashy, just elegant. And then as time goes by, things go in slightly different directions, there's detours here and there. You get to keep a level of consistency in those variations, but not at the price of not fitting new piece where you need them, in those cases you break the symmetry as much as you need...but as little as possible.