[startupdiscuss]

There is also another issue with “just works” and meeting specs: specs are almost universally under constrained.

I might describe an admin interface in terms of what it controls but implicitly I want large choice sets to have search functionality and dates to have calendars and so on.

A large choice set implemented as a massive drop down technically works but I don’t have to explain why it’s just wrong. The “practical” programmer may say hey it works and let’s move on. The “clever” programmer wants to impress with a new widget that is intuitive to use. In this particular case (interface design) I’d prefer the clever coder over the practical one.

[waholleyiv]

What you're describing is about end-user empathy than being "practical" or "clever".