The Limits of Metaphors
All metaphors break down with sufficient mileage.
[And they often break down quite quickly, like that car metaphor I just made.]
Because metaphors break down, it's worth pondering the fact that most of humanity only comprehends software through the use of metaphors.
The metaphors most users experience are graphical user interfaces (desktops, folders, round-rect app icons, back buttons, etc.) The metaphors our friends and family hear include our own attempts to describe how writing software is actually quite a lot like crafting sturdy Amish furniture The metaphors conveyed to business people—at least, the ones that pay to have software developed—are as boundless as they are inane (and they're usually quite inane) The metaphors that software developers themselves are steeped in are perhaps too complex to ever escape.You'll never guess what happens next…