by BerislavLopac on 3/31/25, 7:52 AM with 17 comments
by hnthrow90348765 on 4/1/25, 7:06 PM
Debt is scary as a metaphor because the interest compounds and the bank can repo things, but if you just owe a guy $10, he's not gonna come after you years later with a $300,000 bill. Non-compounding bad decisions are "you owe a guy $X" while the compounding ones are "debt".
Maybe we should use "fees" and "debts" to differentiate these.
by burakemir on 4/2/25, 12:21 AM
From here there are many paths...
"Deliberate vs inadvertent" describes whether we know about the effect the decision has on the utility function.
"Reckless vs prudent" describes whether we are rational and realize that decisions have consequences.
It is also possible that we don't actually have a utility function. Or different people involved in the decision have different utility functions or don't feel the same responsibility towards the outcome (not unheard of when it comes to maintenance/design/architecture vs feature).
What makes the debt metaphor very attractive is that it evokes an image of being in control. We may not have spelled out the utility function but everyone agrees it is bad now so we can pretend it was a rational choice we had. The alternative that we did not take any decision when we could have or were too distracted to see the consequences is much harder to accept. So now that we have debt, let's talk about whether we choose to pay it back or now.
Rather than working hard to create this faux image of control, I wonder how often teams may be better off having an honest discussion about what the utility function is or should be, which decisions will make the group move in the right direction and how the team can keep oneself accountable that the effects that one had in mind actually took place.
by wrs on 4/1/25, 6:12 PM
by rkaregaran on 4/1/25, 6:10 PM
by potatohead00 on 4/2/25, 2:43 AM
no metaphor is perfect, but I think figuring out who is impacted and how by decisions to rush or skip things is important.
by 0xbadcafebee on 4/1/25, 7:42 PM
"Tech debt" isn't debt. It has nothing to do whatsoever with the concept of debt. What people mean when they say "Tech debt" is really "I'm putting off work I know I should be doing now, until later, and I'm doing something else instead that I know I'lll need to undo" That's not debt. That's procrastination. That's delaying the inevitable. It ain't debt.
You don't pay off a car loan with procrastination. You don't decide to put off painting your house and then call that a loan.
"Tech debt" has nothing to do with interest, with a lienholder, a creditor, a payment plan, etc. There is nobody to call in the loan. There is no incremental payment. There is no credit. There is nothing whatsoever to do with the entire concept of debt, much less any of the actual practical real-world implications, actions, or actors, behind debt.
Please let's stop perpetuating this cargo cult myth. There is no such thing as "tech debt". There is only compromises and procrastination, and justifying regrettable decisions by pretending there's a good rationale for them. There isn't.
by uuddlrlrbaba on 4/1/25, 9:12 PM
Even if it were debt, debt is a tool to get you what you need today. And then you likely roll it into something down the line. Maybe you pay it off (and even then the asset still requires maintenance) Like a starter home, then upgrading to a larger home to start a family, etc, etc. Requirements and resources are in constant flux.