[Fixed spelling error 02-15-2005]

I whole heartedly agree with Jeff Atwood's post.  Therein, while quoting Rico Mariani, he talks about a developer's tendency to use OOP features that are not needed nor warranted.  Oftimes while refactoring code (mine and others'), the authors utilized language constructs (such as delegates, virtual methods, elaborate object hierarchies, etc) when the code could be simplified and made much more maintainable.

The quote that stuck in my mind more particularly was “As developers, I think we also tend to be far too optimistic in assessing the generality of our own solutions, and thus we end up building elaborate OOP frameworks around things that may not justify that level of complexity.”  How true it is!  Almost every developer I know has this tendency.  The vast majority of the time, however, the simpler, more direct approach is the best one.  “Don't spend a lot time planning for grandiose, unknown future scenarios.  Good software can evolve into what it will ultimately become.”

Amen.