Computing

Software can be like poetry, although it's rarely well written enough to see the similarities. There are some software applications, tools, games, whatever, that are crafted in such a way as to evoke a feeling of flow, harmony, or stability. I'm not talking about things like MS Word, or Lotus Notes or the like. I'm talking more about those apps that were made by one or two people with a love for what they were doing and an understanding of how their creation fits in the universe. You see this sometimes in open source and smaller commercial apps.

Everyone who works with, or on, software on a daily basis can think of at least one thing they've used which can qualify as poetry. From the user interface to the data handling and on through the code itself, the poem permeates all nooks and crannies of the program. It's self-similar in its elegance and design and there isn't a thing that seems out-of-place.

When you run across a poetic piece of software, you know it. Using it seems an extension of yourself. The interface (be it graphic or otherwise) is like a quiet yet powerful poem that enters your consciousness painlessly and won't let you forget it for weeks, months or a even a lifetime. Continue reading "Poems"