Comment by hosh

My biggest takeaway from Roy Fielding's dissertation wasn't how to construct a RESTful architecture or what is the one true REST, but how to understand any computer architecture -- particularly their constraints -- in order to design and implement appropriate systems. I can easily identify anti-patterns (even in implementations) because they violate the constraints which in turns, takes away from the properties of the architecture. This also quickly allows me to evaluate and understand libraries, runtimes, topologies, and so forth.

I used to get caught up in what is REST and what is not, and that misses the point. It's similar to how Christopher Alexander's ideas pattern languages gets used in a way now that misses the point. Alexander was cited in introductory chapter of Fielding's dissertation. These are all very big ideas with broad applicability and great depth.

When combined with Promise Theory, this gives a dynamic view of systems.