XP (Extreme Programming): Embracing Change

Posted on | By Gene Babon

XP (Extreme Programming): Embracing Change is the fifth chapter of a nine-chapter book entitled Head First Agile. I have completed reading and reviewing this chapter.

XP (Extreme Programming): Embracing Change


“In Head First Agile, you’ll learn all about the ideas behind agile and the straightforward practices that drive it. You’ll take deep dives into Scrum, XP, Lean, and Kanban, the most common real-world agile approaches today. … This book also has everything you need to get certified, with 100% coverage of the PMI-ACP® exam.”

XP (Extreme Programming)

Embracing Change

“Software teams are successful when they build great code. Even really good software teams with very talented developers run into problems with their code. When small code changes ‘bloom’ into a series of cascading hacks, or everyday code commits lead to hours of fixing merge conflicts, work that used to be satisfying becomes annoying, tedious and frustrating. And that’s where XP comes in. XP is an agile methodology that’s focused on building cohesive teams that communicate well, and creating a relaxed, energized environment. When teams build code that’s simple, not complex, they can embrace change rather than fear it.”

Topics covered in Chapter 5: XP (Extreme Programming): Embracing Change include the following:

  • Meet the team behind CircuitTrak
  • Late nights and weekends lead to code problems
  • XP brings a mindset that helps the team and the code
  • Iterative development helps teams stay on top of changes
  • Courage and respect keep fear out of the project
  • Teams build better code when they work together
  • Teams work best when they sit together
  • XP teams value communication
  • Teams work best with relaxed, rested minds
  • Question Clinic: The “which-is-NOT” question
  • XP teams embrace change
  • Frequent feedback keeps changes small
  • Bad experiences cause a rational fear of change
  • XP practices give you feedback about the code
  • XP teams use automated builds that run quickly
  • Continuous integration prevents nasty surprises
  • The weekly cycle starts with writing tests
  • Agile teams get feedback from design and testing
  • Pair programming
  • Complex code is really hard to maintain
  • When teams value simplicity, they build better code
  • Simplicity is a fundamental agile principle
  • Every team accumulated technical debt
  • XP teams “pay down” technical debt in each weekly cycle
  • Incremental design starts (and ends) with simple code
  • Exam Questions

Boston PHP

Boston PHP is the largest education-focused Meetup in New England with more than 3,700 members. Our mission is to engage members in continuing education efforts. As a result, we offer services beyond in-person meetups. A cornerstone of our member engagement strategy is this virtual self-study group initiative called Web Apprentices.

If you would like to learn agile methodologies as part of a group of like-minded web developers, join Boston PHP Meetup and sign up for the next Agile Appetizer self-study group.


Gene Babon

Gene Babon is a team leader, project manager and web developer who is actively seeking next management-level opportunity. Learn more at Pick a lane. Keep driving.


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