“Software is like entropy. It is difficult to grasp, weighs nothing, and obeys the second law of thermodynamics; i.e. it always increases.” LawScienceLiteratureDifficultComputerIncreaseProgrammingSoftwareProgrammersComputer ProgrammingProgramming LanguagesComputer LanguageEntropySoftware DesignThermodynamicsComputer Software Author:Norman Ralph Augustine
“Law Number IX: Acronyms and abbreviations should be used to the maximum extent possible to make trivial ideas profound ... Q.E.D.” ShouldIdeasLawUsedNumbersProfoundMaximumAcronymsAbbreviations Author:Norman Ralph Augustine
“Law Number L: The average regulation has a life span one-fifth as long as a chimpanzee's and one-tenth as long as a human's, but four times as long as the official's who created it.” HumansLongLawNumbersFourAverageOfficialsRegulationFifthChimpanzeesLife Span Author:Norman Ralph Augustine
“Law Number V: One-tenth of the participants produce over one-third of the output. Increasing the number of participants merely reduces the average output.” LawNumbersProduceThirdsAverageParticipantsOutput Author:Norman Ralph Augustine
“Law Number XIV: After the year 2015, there will be no airplane crashes. There will be no takeoffs either, because electronics will occupy 100 percent of every airplane's weight.” YearsLawNumbersPercentWeightAirplaneCrashElectronicsTakeoffAirplane Crashes Author:Norman Ralph Augustine
“Law Number XLIV: Aircraft flight in the 21st century will always be in a westerly direction, preferably supersonic, crossing time zones to provide the additional hours needed to fix the broken electronics.” LawHoursNumbersCenturyBrokenNeededFlightZone21st CenturyCrossingsAircraftElectronicsTime Zones Author:Norman Ralph Augustine
“The more time you spend talking about what you have been doing, the less time you have to do what you have been talking about. Eventually, you spend more and more time talking about less and less until finally you spend all of your time talking about nothing.” Has BeensLawNumbersTalkingMore Time Author:Norman Ralph Augustine
“Law Number XV: The last 10 percent of performance generates one-third of the cost and two-thirds of the problems.” TwoProblemLastsLawNumbersCostPercentPerformancesThirds Author:Norman Ralph Augustine
“Law Number XVI: In the year 2054, the entire defense budget will purchase just one aircraft. This aircraft will have to be shared by the Air Force and Navy 3-1/2 days each per week except for leap year, when it will be made available to the Marines for the extra day.” YearsMadeLawForceNumbersAirWeekAvailableDefenseBudgetsExtrasJust OneLeapNavyMarineAir ForceAircraft Author:Norman Ralph Augustine
“Law Number XX: In any given year, Congress will appropriate the amount of funding approved the prior year plus three-fourths of whatever change the administration requests, minus 4-percent tax.” YearsLawThreeGivenNumbersAmountTaxesPercentCongressAdministrationAppropriatePlusFundingRequestApprovedMinus Author:Norman Ralph Augustine
“Law Number XXIV: The only thing more costly than stretching the schedule of an established project is accelerating it, which is itself the most costly action known to man.” MenActionLawNumbersKnownProjectsSchedulesStretching Author:Norman Ralph Augustine
“Law Number XXIX: Executives who do not produce successful results hold on to their jobs only about five years. Those who produce effective results hang on about half a decade.” YearsJobsLawResultsNumbersHalfSuccessfulFiveProduceDecadesFive YearsExecutives Author:Norman Ralph Augustine
“Law Number XXVIII: It is better to be the reorganizer than the reorganizee.” LawNumbers Author:Norman Ralph Augustine
“Law Number XXXII: Hiring consultants to conduct studies can be an excellent means of turning problems into gold, your problems into their gold.” MeanProblemLawNumbersStudyGoldExcellentHiringConsultants Author:Norman Ralph Augustine
“Law Number XXXIX: Never promise to complete any project within six months of the end of the year, in either direction.” YearsEndsLawNumbersMonthsPromiseSixProjectsSix Months Author:Norman Ralph Augustine
“Law Number XXXVI: The thickness of the proposal required to win a multimillion dollar contract is about one millimeter per million dollars. If all the proposals conforming to this standard were piled on top of each other at the bottom of the Grand Canyon it would probably be a good idea.” IfsIdeasLawWinningNumbersMillionsStandardsDollarsBottomContractsGood IdeasConformProposalMillion DollarsCanyonsGrand CanyonThickness Author:Norman Ralph Augustine
