A good designer must rely on experience, on precise, logic thinking; and on pedantic exactness. No magic will do.

The idea that one might derive satisfaction from his or her successful work, because that work is ingenious, beautiful, or just pleasing, has become ridiculed.

Program construction consists of a sequence of refinement steps.

The belief that complex systems require armies of designers and programmers is wrong. A system that is not understood in its entirety, or at least to a significant degree of detail by a single individual, should probably not be built.

Programs should be written and polished until they acquire publication quality.

Software is getting slower more rapidly than hardware becomes faster.

Reliable and transparent programs are usually not in the interest of the designer.