• Explicit Is Better Than Implicit (EIBTI)¹⁾

• Object-Oriented Design

Explicit is better than implicit.

See section contrary principles.

• First without being explicitly stated RoE has been a central design principle of the programming language Python²⁾. Python dates back to 1991.
• Later this philosophy was stated as part of the “Zen of Python”³⁾
• The rule—although often not stated as such—is also known outside the python community⁴⁾.
• Extend and origin beyond that remains unclear.
• The name “rule of explicitness” is newly introduced here.

• Accepted: Explained by Martin Fowler in ⁵⁾ and in virtually every Python book.

• More Is More Complex (MIMC): Stating something explicitly requires more code.
• Generalization Principle (GP): RoE often results in specific solutions. Generality often requires stating something implicitly.

• Keep It Simple Stupid (KISS): Explicit solutions are often also simpler.

Stub

• Martin Fowler: To Be Explicit
• Tim Peters: The Zen of Python