Accidentally Load Bearing
Huh. Finally a name for it.<p>I do a lot of support work for Control Systems. It isn't unheard to find a chunk of PLC code that treats some sort of physical equipment in a unique way that unintentionally creates problems. I like to parrot a line I heard elsewhere: "Every time Software is used to fix a [Electrical/Mechanical] problem, a Gremlin is born".<p>But often enough when I find a root cause of a bug, or some sort of programmed limitation, the client wants removed. I always refuse until I can find out <i>why</i> that code exists. Nobody puts code in there for no reason, so I need to know why we have a timer, or an override in the first place. Often the answer is the problem it was solving no longer exists, and that's excellent, but for all the times where that code was put there to prevent something from happening and the client had a bunch of staff turnover, the original purpose is lost. Without documentation telling me why it was done that way I'm very cautious to immediately undo someone else's work.<p>I suppose the other aspect is knowing that I trust my coworkers. They don't (typically) do something for no good reason. If it is in there, it is there for a purpose and I must trust my coworkers to have done their due diligence in the first place. If that trust breaks down then everything becomes more difficult to make decisions on.