Some months ago, Cedric has reported people criticizing the use of design patterns on software projects, with some arguments like:
- “it’s a sign that your language is fundamentally broken”
- “focus on simpler solutions before going straight to a complex recipe of design patterns”
and other funny things also. Moreover, some said design patterns was inspired in Cristopher Alexander’s Pattern Language book, although design patterns leverage complexity to the programming languages, totally opposed to the Alexander’s book simplicity proposal. As Cedric said, people do criticize, but not provide better solutions. It’s inside our personality: we often try to find defects in all the ways people realize things, but we don’t like to search for better ways to realize the same things. In my opinion, design patterns are:
- Patterns for developing object-oriented reusable software;
- Leverage a solution to a general design problem in a particular context;
- Promotes design reuse;
- Promotes a common vocabulary on the software development team;
- Facilitate software modifications, documentation;
- Promotes manutenable, understandable, legible code, abstracting aspects of a domain problem;
and some other benefits…
So, what do people want? Every time, every software project implementing the same feature in a different way? Of course we’re not saying here to insulate a lot of patterns in a sofware project, but, come on, why not establish a common vocabulary of software instead of doing things all diferent every time? Why reinventing the wheel?