[sobellian]

It's relevant if you need to rapidly iterate, period. The test is not whether you work at a start-up, but how well you understand your problem. I am currently doing a lot of automated design work with optimization over highly non-convex constraints. Good luck writing that without rapid iteration.

[muspimerol]

Fair point, but I have seen a lot of shitty software developed with this mantra. Usually because the "iterate" part is forgotten in favor of the next "rapid" development. I agree that the quickest way to learn whether your solution is valid is to ship & experiment. But once you know the solution (which is sometimes not even that complicated) then you should really take the time to produce a solid piece of software before moving on.

But I agree, my original comment is probably a little too critical. There are valid times to rapidly iterate and ship. When it turns into the _only_ way you ship software, I think it becomes a problem.