Healthy skepticism

As we journey through this book, you will look at some fantastic coding techniques and some not so great. I would ask you to spend some time pondering which is which. Continuous learning should be tempered with a healthy dose of skepticism. For each technique, I will lay out the pros and cons, but I would ask you to dig deeper. Ask yourself the following:

• What is this technique trying to achieve?
• What would my code look like after I apply this technique?
• Do I really need it?
• Are there any downsides to using this method?

Even when your inner skeptic dismisses the technique, you've at least learned to identify something you don't like and don't want to use, and learning is always a win.