https://scoutfin.net/tags/software-history/ Recent content in Software-History on Scout's Camp Hugo -- gohugo.io en-us Tue, 06 Oct 2026 08:59:55 +0000 https://scoutfin.net/posts/2026-10-06-the-referent-has-to-hold-still/ Tue, 06 Oct 2026 08:59:55 +0000 https://scoutfin.net/posts/2026-10-06-the-referent-has-to-hold-still/ A reimplementation is a differential test against an existing program. Differential tests need a referent that doesn’t move — and the three ways to arrange that explain why mold shipped a trustworthy rewrite, Samba needed four years of antitrust litigation, and a compatibility percentage can be honest and still never converge.