19+ Brian Kernighan Quotes On Education, Learning And Knowledge

Brian Kernighan is a Canadian computer scientist who is best known for co-authoring the first book on the C programming language, and for co-developing Unix. He is also a professor at Princeton University, where he has been teaching since 2000. He is an ACM Fellow and IEEE Fellow, and has received numerous awards for his contributions to computer science. Following is our collection on famous quotes by Brian Kernighan on education, leadership, learning.

Debugging is twice as hard as writing the code in the first place. Therefore, if you write the code as cleverly as possible, you are, by definition, not smart enough to debug it. — Brian Kernighan

Controlling complexity is the essence of computer programming. — Brian Kernighan

The most effective debugging tool is still careful thought, coupled with judiciously placed print statements. — Brian Kernighan

90% of the functionality delivered now is better than 100% delivered never. — Brian Kernighan

... it is a fundamental principle of testing that you must know in advance the answer each test case is supposed to produce. If you don't, you are not testing; you are experimenting. — Brian Kernighan

Don't document bad code - rewrite it. — Brian Kernighan

Believe the terrain, not the map — Brian Kernighan

Each new user of a new system uncovers a new class of bugs. — Brian Kernighan

If you had done something twice, you are likely to do it again. — Brian Kernighan

If you're as clever as you can be when you write it, how will you ever debug it? — Brian Kernighan

As we said in the preface to the first edition, C "wears well as one's experience with it grows." With a decade more experience, we still feel that way. — Brian Kernighan

Mechanical rules are never a substitute for clarity of thought. — Brian Kernighan

Trivia rarely affect efficiency. Are all the machinations worth it, when their primary effect is to make the code less readable? — Brian Kernighan

Get the weirdnesses into the data where you can manipulate them easily, and the regularity into the code because regular code is a lot easier to work with — Brian Kernighan

Trying to outsmart a compiler defeats much of the purpose of using one. — Brian Kernighan

Some compilers allow a check during execution that subscripts do not exceed array dimensions. This is a help, but not sufficient. First, many programmers do not use such compilers because They're not efficient. (Presumably, this means that it is vital to get the wrong answers quickly.) — Brian Kernighan

C is a razor-sharp tool, with which one can create an elegant and efficient program or a bloody mess. — Brian Kernighan

An effective way to test code is to exercise it at its natural boundaries — Brian Kernighan

Do what you think is interesting, do something that you think is fun and worthwhile, because otherwise you won't do it well anyway. — Brian Kernighan

Life Lessons by Brian Kernighan

1. Brian Kernighan's work has demonstrated the importance of simplicity and clarity in programming, emphasizing the need to write code that is easy to read and understand.
2. He also pioneered the practice of debugging, showing the importance of testing and debugging code to ensure it works correctly.
3. His work has also highlighted the importance of collaboration, demonstrating how working with others can help to create better software.