Program testing can be a very effective way to show the presence of bu — Edsger W. Dijkstra

"Thank goodness we dont have only serious problems, but ridiculous ones as well."

"When we take the position that it is not only the programmers responsibility to produce a correct program but also to demonstrate its correctness in a convincing manner, then the above remarks have a profound influence on the programmers activity: the object he has to produce must be usefully structured."

"The major cause [of the software crisis] is that the machines have become several orders of magnitude more powerful! To put it quite bluntly: as long as there were no machines, programming was no problem at all; when we had a few weak computers, programming became a mild problem, and now we have gigantic computers, programming has become an equally gigantic problem. In this sense the electronic industry has not solved a single problem, it has only created them, it has created the problem of using its products."

"Several people have told me that my inability to suffer fools gladly is one of my main weaknesses."

"Program testing can be used to show the presence of bugs, but never to show their absence!"

"Dont blame me for the fact that competent programming, as I view it as an intellectual possibility, will be too difficult for "the average programmer" — you must not fall into the trap of rejecting a surgical technique because it is beyond the capabilities of the barber in his shop around the corner."