26: "Know-when" is as important as know-how

As I've been doing with these; I like to add comments before I read what the book says.
If these are principles, the principle itself should give us some information... some insight.

I'm also coming back to this after a month or ... something?

OK... What do I think of this... Ehhh

I don't think it's wrong... but it feels funny. As I try to figure out why I keep cycling that... yeah; either one w/o the other is... failure.

If you don't know when but you do know how... you'll never apply the knowledge at the right time.
If you don't know how, but can tell when... And this is why it feels funny. It gets into being able to detect code smells.

If you can "know when" but not "know how" - you're able to get help from someone with the "know how". If you know the code isn't right (using code smells), you can get help to identify and fix the smell.

Clearly both know- how/when are important, but we'll be much better off if we emphasize learning the "know-when" and then we can learn from those that have the "know-how".

OK - What's the book say...

That knowing WHEN to use a technique you know HOW is critically important.

Yeah. I agree.

The books "principles" require contextual knowledge... That's a sucky principle... IMO.

"Knowing when to use a technique is as important as knowing how to use it".

That's a better form of the principle the book is actually asdvocating and I disagree.

Knowing when to (not) use a technique is more important than knowing how to use it.

I find it more important to know when to (not) do something than the knowing the thing itself. The technique is easier to learn and can be done later. Knowing the when will show you the time to actually learn (in detail) the technique.

Even coming back to this book... I had SUCH high hopes for it... glorious insights from ages past... Ya know... 1995... Some of the books I got in my most recent mass purchase are showing their value... this one...

Is Not.

I'll keep going. It changes the emphasis of things so maybe... maybe the next section will be ... better?

I'm not holding out hope.