KISS Principle
ELI5 — The Vibe Check
KISS: Keep It Simple, Stupid. The best code is the code that doesn't make you think. No clever tricks, no over-engineered abstractions, no 'look how smart I am' patterns. If a junior can't understand it, it's too complex.
Real Talk
A design principle stating that most systems work best when kept simple rather than made complex. In software, KISS advocates for straightforward implementations, minimal abstractions, and clear code over clever code. Complexity should be added only when simplicity can't meet the requirements.
When You'll Hear This
"A simple if/else is better than a clever pattern matching chain that nobody can read — KISS." / "KISS doesn't mean simplistic — it means the simplest solution that solves the actual problem."
Related Terms
Code Review
A code review is when another developer reads your code before it gets merged, looking for bugs, bad practices, or anything confusing.
DRY Principle
DRY: Don't Repeat Yourself. If you're copy-pasting code, you're doing it wrong. Extract it into a function. But beware — not all similar-looking code shoul
Refactoring
Refactoring is improving the internal structure of code WITHOUT changing what it does from the outside.
YAGNI Principle
YAGNI: You Ain't Gonna Need It. Don't build features 'just in case.' That abstraction layer for a database switch that will 'probably' happen? It won't. Bu