Bible. This work inspired many authors in the systems movement, such as scientists Mario Bunge (1979), Paul Watzlawick (1990) and Russell L. Ackoff (1999), and systems designers Ken Orr (1981) and Grady Booch (1991). Gall's law Gall's Law is a rule of thumb for systems design from Gall's book Systemantics: How Systems Really Work and How They Fail. It states: This law is essentially an argument in favour of underspecification: it can be used to explain the success of systems like the World Wide Web and Blogosphere, which grew from simple to complex systems incrementally, and the failure of systems like CORBA, which began with complex specifications. Gall's Law has strong affinities to the practice of agile software development. Although dubbed Gall's Law by some, the phrase is not labeled as such in the original work. The work cites Murphy's Law and the Peter Principle, and is filled with similar sayings. Although the quote may seem to validate the merits of simple systems, it is preceded by the qualifier "A simple system may or may not work." (p. 70). This philosophy can also be attributed to extreme programming, which encourages doing the simplest thing first and adding features later. One of the first systems designers to quote Gall's law was Ken Orr in 1981. Notable were the quotations of Gall's Law by Grady Booch since 1991, which were mentioned in multiple sources. Selected books 1975. General systemantics : an essay on how systems work, and especially how they fail, together with the very first annotated compendium of basic systems axioms : a handbook and ready reference for scientists, engineers, laboratory workers, administrators, public officials, systems analysts, etc., etc., etc., and the general public.. General Systemantics Press, Ann Arbor, Michigan. 1986. Systemantics: The Underground Text of Systems Lore. How Systems Really Work and How They Fail (2nd edition). . 1993. Elegant parenting: (how to do it right the first time. with Beth Gall. 2002. The Systems Bible: The Beginner's Guide to Systems Large and Small (3rd edition of Systemantics). . 2002. First Queen: A Historical Novel on the Life of Hatshepsut Queen of Egypt 2004. Dancing With Elves: Parenting As a Performing Art 2008. Hit by a Low Flying Goose. with Carol A. Gall References External links General Systemantics™ Press Systemantics - extract 1925 births 2014 deaths American information and reference writers American social sciences writers American pediatricians St. John's College