Fix and continue in Smalltalk

'Fix and continue' in smalltalk is similar to edit and continue in .net. But listen to how well it's described in this screencast from James Robertson. I love the metaphor he uses:

"In most environments, when you're in the debugger, what you've got is a dead patient and you're a forensic pathologist. The best you can do is figure out what killed the poor guy and then hope that the next version doesn't die of the same thing.

"In smalltalk you're a surgeon. You've got the guy laid out on a table. He's under anaesthesia, but you can patch him up and send him on his way."
James Robertson

This is reminiscent of the old medical saying:

You can always make a correct diagnosis - but sometimes, you have to wait until the autopsy
(via Dr Karl)

For an interestng rant against edit and continue, read what frans bouma said on the topic in 2003. (If you're not yet familiar with Frans -- then you might like to read his 2003 rant against stored procedures too.)

On a different track, check out this amazing Douglas Adams DocuFantasy Video from 1990. He does a pretty nice job of pre-empting YouTube, the internet, and of covering the pre-history of the pre-internet as it stood at that time. A clippy like butler 'agent' even makes an appearance.

My book "Choose Your First Product" is available now.

It gives you 4 easy steps to find and validate a humble product idea.

Learn more.