Robert C. Martin > Quotes

“Truth can only be found in one place: the code.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship

“Indeed, the ratio of time spent reading versus writing is well over 10 to 1. We are constantly reading old code as part of the effort to write new code. ...[Therefore,] making it easy to read makes it easier to write.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship

“It is not enough for code to work.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship

“Slaves are not allowed to say no. Laborers may be hesitant to say no. But
professionals are expected to say no. Indeed, good managers crave someone who
has the guts to say no. It’s the only way you can really get anything done.”
― Robert C. Martin, The Clean Coder: A Code of Conduct for Professional Programmers

“So if you want to go fast, if you want to get done quickly, if you want your code to be easy to write, make it easy to read.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship

“The only way to go fast, is to go well.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Architecture

“You should name a variable using the same care with which you name a first-born child.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship

“A long descriptive name is better than a short enigmatic name. A long descriptive name is better than a long descriptive comment.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship

“If you're good at the debugger it means you spent a lot of time debugging. I don't want you to be good at the debugger.”
― Robert C. Martin

“Clean code always looks like it was written by someone who cares.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship

“Of course bad code can be cleaned up. But it’s very expensive.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship

“Clean code is not written by following a set of rules. You don’t become a software craftsman by learning a list of heuristics. Professionalism and craftsmanship come from values that drive disciplines.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship

“Every time you write a comment, you should grimace and feel the failure of your ability of expression.”
― Robert C. Martin, The Robert C. Martin Clean Code Collection (Collection)

“Remember that code is really the language in which we ultimately express the requirements. We may create languages that are closer to the requirements. We may create tools that help us parse and assemble those requirements into formal structures. But we will never eliminate necessary precision—so there will always be code.”
― Robert C. Martin

“Redundant comments are just places to collect lies and misinformation.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship

“It is not the language that makes programs appear simple. It is the programmer that make the language appear simple!”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship

“Why do most developers fear to make continuous changes to their code? They are afraid they’ll break it! Why are they afraid they’ll break it? Because they don’t have tests.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Coder, The: A Code of Conduct for Professional Programmers

“There are two parts to learning craftsmanship: knowledge and work. You must gain the knowledge of principles, patterns, practices, and heuristics that a craftsman knows, and you must also grind that knowledge into your fingers, eyes, and gut by working hard and
practicing.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship

“What would happen if you allowed a bug to slip through a module, and it cost
your company $10,000? The nonprofessional would shrug his shoulders, say
“stuff happens,” and start writing the next module. The professional would
write the company a check for $10,000!”
― Robert C. Martin, The Clean Coder: A Code of Conduct for Professional Programmers

“I'm a programmer. I like programming. And the best way I've found to have a positive impact on code is to write it.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Architecture

“You are reading this book for two reasons. First, you are a programmer. Second, you want to be a better programmer. Good. We need better programmers.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship

“One difference between a smart programmer and a professional programmer is that
the professional understands that clarity is king. Professionals use their powers for good and write code that others can understand.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship

“Any organisation that designs a system will produce a design whose structure is a copy of the organisation's communication structure”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Architecture

“Don’t Use a Comment When You Can Use a Function or a Variable”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship

“When you are working on a problem, you sometimes get so close to it that you can’t see all the options. You miss elegant solutions because the creative part of your mind is suppressed by the intensity of your focus. Sometimes the best way to solve a problem is to go home, eat dinner, watch TV, go to bed, and then wake up the next morning and take a shower.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Coder, The: A Code of Conduct for Professional Programmers

“Perhaps you thought that “getting it working” was the first order of business for a professional developer. I hope by now, however, that this book has disabused you of that idea. The functionality that you create today has a good chance of changing in the next release, but the readability of your code will have a profound effect on all the changes that will ever be made.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship

“Programming is a social activity.”
― Robert C. Martin

“The problem is that we view estimates in different ways. Business likes to view estimates as commitments. Developers like to view estimates as guesses. The difference is profound.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Coder, The: A Code of Conduct for Professional Programmers

“Programmers must avoid leaving false clues that obscure the meaning of code.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship

“Some folks think that Agile is about going fast. It’s not. It’s never been about going fast. Agile is about knowing, as early as possible, just how screwed we are.”
― Robert C. Martin, Clean Agile: Back to Basics