Embracing Residuality in Architecture

This interview was recorded for the GOTO Book Club.
http://gotopia.tech/bookclub

Read the full transcription of the interview here

Barry O'Reilly - Founder at Black Tulip Tech and Author of "Residues" & "The Architect's Paradox"
Jacqui Read - Software Architect, Speaker & Author of "Communication Patterns"

RESOURCES
Barry
https://bsky.app/profile/technologytulip.bsky.social
https://www.linkedin.com/in/barry-o-reilly-b924657
https://www.blacktulip.se

Jacqui
https://bsky.app/profile/tekiegirl.bsky.social
https://jacquiread.com
https://fosstodon.org/@tekiegirl
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacquelineread
https://github.com/tekiegirl

DESCRIPTION
In this GOTO Book Club interview, Jacqui Read discusses with Barry O'Reilly his books "Residues: Time, Uncertainty, and Change in Software Architecture" and "The Architect's Paradox". He explains how uncertainty defines the architect's role and introduces residuality—a method where architects deliberately stress their conceptual models until they collapse, then optimize the resulting "residues" or leftovers to create more resilient systems.

Unlike traditional software engineering approaches, that try to eliminate uncertainty through rigid requirements, residuality embraces random stressors (even far-fetched scenarios like giant lizards) to uncover architectural fault lines.

O'Reilly argues that this playful yet mathematically sound approach produces more robust architectures than conventional methods, and his second book explores how inherited philosophical thinking often undermines software architecture's effectiveness in complex business contexts.

RECOMMENDED BOOKS
Barry O'Reilly • Residues
Barry O'Reilly • The Architect's Paradox
Jacqui Read • Communication Patterns
Anne Currie & Jamie Dobson • The Cloud Native Attitude
Gregor Hohpe • The Software Architect Elevator
Gregor Hohpe • Enterprise Integration Patterns, Vol 2

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