Comment by mumblemumble

I prefer the Gates version. Dijkstra's implicit premise rather naively assumes that it is somehow less expensive to produce fewer lines of code. It's arguably such an absolute statement that it subtly encourages people to engage in undesirable behaviors such as playing code golf at work.

Gates's, on the other hand, accurately captures the reality: while, all else being equal, a lighter-weight design is preferable to a heavier one, it takes some skill and effort to actually produce the lighter design. Which leaves open the possibility that doing so may not actually be worth the effort.