[agumonkey]

I'm a little stumped by that, I'm all for repl oriented development, ~zero round trip time etc etc but I have to admit that when you thought the problem through in your head long before writing any, then the right code will fall through. So are instantaneous cycles good or bad ?

[japhyr]

For me this advice is about developing your spec to an appropriate level of detail before writing any significant amount of code. I'm still in the phase where writing code is fun, and it takes a little discipline to think my spec through enough to make my code-writing time efficient.

[mattrepl]

Instant feedback makes coding more tangible but can be harmful. One may get caught in an edit-eval cycle and spend time solving the wrong problem.

Regularly stepping back and reevaluating assumptions/goals helps. (And write supporting tests, if you swing that way.)

[apricot]

So are instantaneous cycles good or bad ?

Three pounds of flax.

[contingencies]

(price of)

To the extent that [Agile software development] is [an excuse for not thinking], it's a bad thing. - Leslie Lamport