barbarian meets coding
Hi! This article is part of my personal notebook where I collect notes of interesting thoughts and ideas while I am learning new technologies. You are welcome to use it for your own learning!
Tracer bullets are a really useful and evocative metaphor in the context of writing software when we’re given a set of vague requirements because our customers don’t know or can’t express what they really need or want.
Tracer bullets are loaded at intervals alongside regular ammunition. When they’re fired, their phosphorus ignites and leaves a pyrotechnic trail from the gun to whatever they hit. If the tracers are hitting the target, then so are the regular bullets. Soldiers use these tracer rounds to refine their aim: it’s pragmatic, real-time feedback under actual conditions.
That same principle applies to projects, particularly when you’re building something that hasn’t been built before. We use the term tracer bullet development to visually illustrate the need for immediate feedback under actual conditions with a moving goal.
