[fit2rule]

Cults and Software go hand in hand. Don't be so terrified of cults if you're just getting into software - they're important in this industry. Very little of any import actually gets done without them ... and despite what you may think, the cult model is very useful when it comes to software development. Without a stable individual around which to rally, technology wheels spin and spin. However, with a cult figure making key decisions and acting as a centralized figure around which to rally, software development efforts - inherently group based - prosper.

No committee ever designed and delivered decent software systems. It takes the tall poppy to stick his head above the crop and survey the field before progress can be made.

And, before you downvote, consider the examples. There are many, many positive software cults in our world today.

[TDL]

"There are many, many positive software cults in our world today."

Care to name some? I don't believe cultivating religious fervor over anything and rejecting information that disconfirms or challenges your beliefs as a positive thing.

[SkyMarshal]

Peter Thiel on how to run your startup like a cult: http://www.wired.com/2014/09/run-startup-like-cult-heres/

[fit2rule]

The Cult of Linus.

The Cult of RMS.

The Cult of Carmack.

The Cult of antirez.

The Cult of Pike.

Cult, definition:

... (religious definition skipped) ...

4. a group or sect bound together by veneration of the same thing, person, ideal, etc. 5. Sociology. a group having a sacred ideology and a set of rites centering around their sacred symbols.

[pigeons]

Cult of DJB

[fit2rule]

Yup. Great example.