The Second-System Effect a.k.a. the sophomore project

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic Source:

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II Source: Believed by many to be released as an incomplete product following a rushed development period (a fact which is supported by evidence of missing content within the game's files), KOTOR II's story is full of holes (and more than a few gameplay bugs). The worst offender is the game's closing sequence - Light Side OR Dark Side - which isn't really an ending so much as it is proof that you've wasted a colossal amount of time Source:

What is the Second-System Effect? The Second-System effect is what designers of systems need to watch out for. The Second-System effect is what designers of systems need to watch out for. Sophomore comes from the Greek word sophos meaning wise and moros meaning foolish. ( Sophomore comes from the Greek word sophos meaning wise and moros meaning foolish. (

More != Better If you are able to re-design a system you would want to include everything that was not included the first time. If you are able to re-design a system you would want to include everything that was not included the first time. This is where you need to be careful because you might add too much to the systems and what was added to speed up the system might actually slow it down. This is where you need to be careful because you might add too much to the systems and what was added to speed up the system might actually slow it down.

Example: OS/360 For nearly the entire team OS/360 was their second project For nearly the entire team OS/360 was their second project The designers added a function to correct the date for leap year which took up 26 bytes of data (which was a lot of space during that time). The designers added a function to correct the date for leap year which took up 26 bytes of data (which was a lot of space during that time).

Don’t make obsolete better! The OS/360 team made another mistake, they tried to improve parts of their system that were made obsolete by better methods. The OS/360 team made another mistake, they tried to improve parts of their system that were made obsolete by better methods. OS/360 was designed so the mistakes could be corrected with out recompiling but with their method and new compilers their way ended up taking longer. OS/360 was designed so the mistakes could be corrected with out recompiling but with their method and new compilers their way ended up taking longer.

How to avoid the Second-System Effect? The Architect just needs to be very careful and keep in mind of certain things that can bog down the system. The Architect just needs to be very careful and keep in mind of certain things that can bog down the system. He should also create a system to measure each new function he wants to implement. This would measure added functionally and how many resources are needed for it to determine it’s worth. He should also create a system to measure each new function he wants to implement. This would measure added functionally and how many resources are needed for it to determine it’s worth.

Questions?