[twobitshifter]

“Complexity is the enemy of execution.” - Tony Robbins

I don’t think Tony ever did any coding, but you’re right that it still applies here.

A google search shows complexity has many other enemies: security,reliability, agility, and progress itself.

In most cases I think this is right, use Go and simple tools whenever you can. There are cases where complexity is unavoidable though, like when you’re trying to land a rover in a precise location on Mars, where the sky crane makes sense, but don’t introduce the complexity when it’s unneeded.

[justsomeuser]

Rust is more complex than Go, but when you are dealing with the inherent complexity in a problem, sometimes Rust can allow you to make the decision to take a larger chunk of that complexity and handle it at compile time (instead of at runtime with a crash->debug->fix feedback loop).

So you get sometimes stressful and frustrating writing sessions, coupled with more confidence in the runtime correctness. Also the more expressive type system can allow you to more closely match the domain, which helps when you add new features in the future as you can rule out certain invalid states or interactions.

I often feel you need to know the right conventions to write correct Go programs, where as Rust will just tell you you cannot run it.

I would get things done faster in Go for sure, but the compiled artifact would likely have more issues during runtime.

[kbenson]

> don’t introduce the complexity when it’s unneeded.

Prediction is hard. Sometimes I start with something simple, and it ends up growing in scope until it's quite large and complex. Other times I start with something simple, and it stays simple.

So, what's worse, using a complex and/or strict language for something simple, or a simple and less strict language for something that ends up being very large and/or complex?

Interestingly, some people will probably read that last paragraph as my trying to make a point through implication. I suspect different people will assume I'm saying completely opposite things based on their own experience. Really, it's just hard, you get better at making the right choice as you go along, but you'll never always get it right.