[jamesfinlayson]

> How would Tim's system look if they had opted for his approach from the start? How does the 3rd iteration of the system compare to the 1st iteration? Maybe Tim's solution is stepping-stone to something better. Impossible to tell.

Reminds of something a senior developer once told me about rewriting systems: the first iteration is ad-hoc and messy; the second iteration is well thought out but completely over-engineered and the third iteration gets it right because the developers have done extremes and know where the correct middle ground is.

[a1445c8b]

This has been my experience as well! This is why, if I have enough time to do it, I'd normally go through at least 2 throw-away prototypes before settling on a design to implement.