What I Learned with Lego That Helps Me Develop Better Software

written by Douglas Franco - Frontend Tech Lead

Have you ever marveled at the intricate structures built with Lego bricks? As a software developer, I've discovered surprising parallels between the world of Lego and the realm of software development.?

The principles that make Lego creations awe-inspiring are not just confined to the colorful blocks but extend to fundamental practices that enhance my approach to developing software. Join me on a journey through the world of Lego and discover the invaluable lessons it imparts to building better software.

1. Building Blocks and Modular Thinking

Lego structures are crafted from basic building blocks, and similarly, software development benefits immensely from a modular approach. By breaking down complex systems into manageable, independent modules, I've found that my code becomes more flexible, maintainable, and adaptable. Just as each Lego block serves a unique purpose, each module in my software fulfills a specific function, contributing to the overall cohesion of the application.

2. Creativity Through Constraints

Lego sets come with specific pieces and colors, providing a creative challenge within constraints. In software development, constraints such as deadlines, resource limitations, and coding standards can be seen as opportunities for innovation. Embracing constraints encourages out-of-the-box thinking and fosters solutions that are not only functional but also elegant.

3. Iteration and Prototyping

Lego builders often iterate on their designs, tweaking and refining until they achieve the desired result. Likewise, software development benefits from a prototyping mindset. Rapid iterations allow for continuous improvement, enabling me to refine features, optimize code, and respond effectively to user feedback.

4. Standardization and Consistency

Lego bricks are standardized, ensuring that they fit together seamlessly. In software development, adhering to coding standards and established practices promotes consistency. Consistent coding styles and practices across projects make the codebase more readable, maintainable, and collaborative.

5. Collaboration and Teamwork

Lego construction is often a collaborative effort. Similarly, effective software development is a team endeavor. Sharing code, ideas, and knowledge with team members enhances the collective skill set. Just as different Lego builders bring diverse perspectives to a creation, collaboration in software development results in well-rounded solutions.

6. User-Centric Design

Lego sets are designed with the end user in mind, ensuring a satisfying building experience. In software development, adopting a user-centric approach leads to more intuitive and enjoyable applications. By empathizing with end users, I create software that not only functions well but also meets the needs and expectations of its audience.

Composable Software as Lego Blocks

Just like Lego blocks, composable software involves breaking down complex systems into modular, reusable components. Composable software is a design technique that allows developers to create modular and reusable components that can be combined in different ways to create complex applications. As you can see below, composable software are more similar than you can imagine.

Modularity: Like Lego bricks, composable software breaks down applications into modular components, each serving a specific function.

Reusability: Similar to Lego bricks being reused in different constructions, composable software components are designed for reuse in various projects.

Flexibility and Customization: Just as Lego allows endless customization, composable software enables developers to adapt and modify applications by combining existing components.

Interoperability: Lego's standardized connections mirror composable software's well-defined interfaces, ensuring seamless interoperability between different components.

Scalability: Comparable to Lego constructions scaling up or down, composable software supports scalability by adding or modifying components as projects grow. You can start building something valuable with just a few blocks.

Boosting Software Development Efficiency with Composable Software (or Lego Mindset)

One of the biggest challenges for software development teams is to maintain a high-quality codebase that can scale, evolve, and adapt to changing requirements. A codebase that is poorly designed, inconsistent, or hard to understand can lead to bugs, delays, and frustration for both developers and customers.

As an engineer that values quality and efficiency, I’m always seeking productivity boosting solutions that can help us deliver better results for our customers and future clients. To avoid problems maintaining codebase, software engineers need to use techniques and practices that help them write, organize, and share code in a modular, reusable, and maintainable way. And here it’s one of these techniques we are talking about, composable software engineering, or what I call, Lego Mindset.

What is composable software

Composable software is a design technique that allows developers to create modular and reusable components that can be combined in different ways to create complex applications. Composable software has many benefits, such as:

• It improves code quality and maintainability by reducing duplication and complexity.
• It enables faster development and delivery by allowing developers to reuse existing components and focus on the business logic.
• It facilitates collaboration and innovation by enabling developers to share and integrate components across teams and projects.
• It supports scalability and adaptability by allowing developers to add, remove, or replace components as needed without affecting the whole system.

Composable software is not a new concept, but it has gained popularity in recent years due to the emergence of new tools and technologies that support it, but you probably have already heard about Microservices, serverless, low-code/no-code. These are all about composable software engineering.

Currently there are many frameworks and tools that facilitate the development of composable softwares, one of them I like to use is Bit.dev. Bit.dev is a cloud platform that enables teams to create and collaborate on components - isolated pieces of code that can be used across different projects and applications. And the best part is that we can start with no cost.

This tool allows developers to create a component library that is hosted in the cloud, versioned, and documented. Developers can then import and use components from the library in their projects, without having to copy or duplicate code. This way, they can ensure consistency, reduce complexity, and improve productivity.

We can also benefit from other features such as testing, linting, bundling, and dependency management for components, so developers don't have to worry about the technical details of each component. They can focus on the business logic and functionality of their applications.

Streamlining Component Management

Sometimes we face a project with multiple development teams spread across different projects. The teams frequently encounter challenges related to component management, collaboration, and code consistency. This is where composable software steps in to revolutionize your workflow.

Here I listed a few scenarios that stand out by using composable software techniques.?

Component Reusability

Component reusability involves creating modular, standalone software elements that can be reused across different projects. This approach streamlines development by promoting consistency and reducing redundancy, as teams can leverage pre-built components for various applications.

Versioning and Dependency Management

Versioning and dependency management are critical aspects of software development. This involves controlling and updating software versions and managing dependencies to ensure smooth integration and reduce conflicts, ultimately contributing to a more organized and efficient development process.

Collaboration Across Teams

Effective collaboration across development teams is essential for project success. Collaborative tools and practices enable teams to share knowledge, resources, and components, fostering a culture of innovation and efficiency. This collaborative approach breaks down silos and promotes a unified development effort.

Code Quality and Consistency

Maintaining high code quality and visual consistency is crucial for delivering a polished software product. This involves adhering to coding standards and best practices, ensuring that each component is developed and maintained with precision. Consistent code quality contributes to a seamless user experience and reduces the likelihood of errors.

Agile Development and Time Savings

Agile development emphasizes flexibility and responsiveness in project management. Reusable components and efficient collaboration enable agile development by saving time and resources. Teams can focus on unique project requirements without starting from scratch, leading to faster development cycles and efficient resource utilization.

From Lego to Code

As I reflect on my experiences with Lego, I'm struck by how the simple yet profound principles learned from those colorful bricks have shaped my approach to software development. The modular thinking, creativity within constraints, iteration, standardization, collaboration, and user-centric design principles from Lego have become foundational elements in my coding toolbox. So, the next time you find yourself building with Lego, consider how the lessons learned from those little bricks can be applied to construct better, more innovative software. After all, both Lego and code are about building something remarkable, one piece at a time. Let’s have a Lego Mindset ??