Sensible Defaults
The idea of best practices can't keep up with the fast-changing industry, and some may even become anti-patterns. However, we still need a set of de facto practices that accommodate nuances and trade-offs with the new context and circumstances in mind. That gives rise to what we call "sensible defaults." Sensible defaults are a collection of concrete measures, a common language, and a starting point for engineers in any project. They include things like infrastructure as code, TDD, CI/CD, pair programming, etc. They are opinionated yet work well together. For example, to achieve continuous delivery, good quality assurance needs to be in place, and TDD tends to encourage thought and development processes. Pairing is also one of the best ways to break down silos and foster an inclusive and collaborative environment. For that reason, sensible defaults work best on a team level. Sensible defaults should evolve with changes in our understanding, such as team size, skills, and ...