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Complexity

Complexity is anything related to the structure of a software system that makes it hard to understand or modify the system

Complexity manifests itself in three general ways:

  • change amplification - simple change requires code modification in many places
  • cognitive load - how much a developer needs to know to complete a task
  • unknown unknowns - code changes to complete a task are not obvious

Complexity is caused by:

  • dependencies - occur when a given piece of code can not be modified in isolation without considering/modifiying another piece of code
    • leads to change amplification and a high cognitive load
  • obscurity - occur when important information is not obvious
    • creates unknown unknowns and contributes to cognitive load

Modern software systems are intrinsic with complexity, and the skill requirements that constitute full stack development are evergrowing. However, movements to revert to fundamentals - such as Radical Simplicity - appear to be gaining traction back to a leaner stack.

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