Wheeler's aphorism

programming

'All problems in computer science can be solved by another level of indirection', with the folk corollary: except too many levels of indirection.

Attributed to Cambridge pioneer David Wheeler, co-inventor of the subroutine, the aphorism names the field's universal move: interpose a layer, a pointer, a proxy, a virtual machine, and the incompatible becomes compatible. The unofficial corollary carries the bill, since every layer adds latency, opacity, and a new place for abstractions to leak. Modern stacks are Wheeler's aphorism applied a few dozen times, followed by observability tools sold to see through the result.

Also known as: fundamental theorem of software engineering, another level of indirection

← All glossary entries