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Development Strategy

Kernighan/Pike advocate a pragmatic approach to efficiency:
  • first, make the program simple, clear, robust and correct
  • then, worry about efficiency ... if it's a problem at all
Points to note:
  • good design is always critical
    (at design time, make sensible choice of data structures, algorithms)
  • where possible, handle efficiency at system level
    (e.g. buy a bigger machine, use compiler optimisation, ...)
Pike: "A fast program that gets the wrong answer saves no time."