Beautiful Architecture: a first look

I recently got my copy of Beautiful Architecture. Following the SQ3R reading pattern I picked up from Pragmatic Thinking and Learning, I started my survey in the Table of Contents, and what did I find but a chapter on Emacs and Creeping Featurism by my friend, Jim Blandy

All discipline shot, I stopped my survey and jumped in to read jimb's essay. It was all I expected it to be — jimb's a really smart guy after all. The only nit that I'd pick is that in one spot he sells emacs short, saying:

...Emacs has only a limited understanding of the semantic structure of the programs it edits, and can't offer comparable [refactoring] support.

In truth, all emacs need to provide refactoring support for a language is an external program that it can use to provide that support. In Ruby-land, I have high hopes for combinations of tools like reek, flay, and RFactor underlying emacs and making ruby refactoring easy.