Editing Kent Beck

{{Short description|American software engineer}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2023}} {{Use American English|date=November 2023}}
{{Infobox scientist
   |image             = Kent Beck no Workshop Mapping XP.jpg
   |image_size        = 
   |caption           = Beck at a workshop in 2006
   |birth_date        = {{Birth year and age|1961}} 
   |birth_place       = 
   |residence         = 
   |citizenship       = United States
   |field             = [[Software engineering]]
   |work_institution  = [[Gusto (company)|Gusto]]
   |alma_mater        = [[University of Oregon]]
   |doctoral_advisor  = 
   |doctoral_students = 
   |known_for         = [[Extreme programming]], [[Design pattern (computer science)|Software design patterns]], [[JUnit]] 
   |prizes            = 
}}
[[File:Kent Beck 1.jpg|thumb|Kent Beck speaking in 2001]]
'''Kent Beck''' (born 1961) is an American [[software engineer]] and the creator of [[extreme programming]],<noinclude><ref name=Cworld92/></noinclude> a [[Software development process|software development methodology]] that eschews rigid formal specification for a collaborative and iterative design process. Beck was one of the 17 original signatories of the [[Agile software development#The Agile Manifesto|Agile Manifesto]],<noinclude><ref name="Cworld92">"Extreme Programming", ''Computerworld'' (online), 2005, webpage: [http://www.computerworld.com/softwaretopics/software/appdev/story/0,10801,66192,00.html Computerworld-appdev-92] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110605060209/http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/66192/Extreme_Programming?taxonomyId=063 |date=June 5, 2011 }}.</ref></noinclude> the founding document for [[agile software development]]. Extreme and Agile methods are closely associated with [[Test-driven development|Test-Driven Development]] (TDD), of which Beck is perhaps the leading proponent.

Beck pioneered [[software design pattern]]s, as well as the commercial application of [[Smalltalk]]. He wrote the [[SUnit]] [[unit testing]] framework for Smalltalk, which spawned the [[xUnit]] series of frameworks, notably [[JUnit]] for Java, which Beck wrote with [[Erich Gamma]]. Beck popularized [[Class-responsibility-collaboration card|CRC card]]s with [[Ward Cunningham]], the inventor of the wiki.

He lives in [[San Francisco, California]] and previously worked at [[Facebook]].<ref>[https://www.facebook.com/notes/kent-beck/my-personal-mission/1811782322187957/ "Given my newly independent status after seven years at Facebook..."]</ref> In 2019, Beck joined [[Gusto (company)|Gusto]] as a software fellow and coach, where he coaches engineering teams as they build out payroll systems for small businesses.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/kent-beck-gusto-agile-manifesto-chrysler-2019-8|title=Meet the influential programmer who's helping $3.8 billion Gusto make sure that its software always stays ahead of the times|date=2019-09-04|publisher=[[Business Insider]]}}</ref>

== History ==
Beck attended the [[University of Oregon]] between 1979 and 1987, receiving [[Bachelor of Science|B.S.]] and [[Master of Science|M.S.]] degrees in [[University of Oregon Department of Computer and Information Science|computer and information science]].<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.linkedin.com/in/kentbeck | title = Kent Beck | author = Beck, Kent | publisher = LinkedIn | access-date = March 5, 2012}}</ref>

In 1996 Beck was hired to work on the [[Chrysler Comprehensive Compensation System]]. Beck in turn brought in [[Ron Jeffries]]. In March 1996 the development team estimated the system would be ready to go into production around one year later.  In 1997 the development team adopted a way of working which is now formalized as [[extreme programming]].<ref>{{cite book|editor-last=Highsmith|editor-first=Jim|editor-link=Jim Highsmith|title=[[Agile Software Development Ecosystems]]|date=February 18, 2024 |page=298|publisher=Addison-Wesley Professional |isbn=978-0-201-76043-9}}</ref> The one-year delivery target was nearly achieved, with actual delivery being only a couple of months late.

== Publications ==
=== Books ===
* 1996. ''Kent Beck's Guide to Better Smalltalk : A Sorted Collection''. Cambridge University Press. ({{ISBN|978-0521644372}})
* 1997. ''Smalltalk Best Practice Patterns''. Prentice Hall.  ({{ISBN|978-0134769042}})
* 2000. ''Extreme Programming Explained: Embrace Change''. Addison-Wesley. Winner of [[Jolt Awards|the Jolt Productivity Award]]. ({{ISBN|978-0321278654}})
* 2000. ''Planning Extreme Programming''. With [[Martin Fowler (software engineer)|Martin Fowler]]. Addison-Wesley. ({{ISBN|978-0201710915}})
* 2002. ''Test-Driven Development by Example''. Addison-Wesley.  Winner of the Jolt Productivity Award. ({{ISBN|978-0321146533}})
*: Beck's concept of [[test-driven development]] centers on two basic rules:
*:# Never write a single line of code unless you have a failing automated test.
*:# Eliminate duplication.
The book illustrates the use of unit testing as part of the methodology, including examples in Java and Python. One section includes using test-driven development to develop a unit testing framework.
* 2003. ''Contributing to Eclipse: Principles, Patterns, and Plugins''. With [[Erich Gamma]]. Addison-Wesley. ({{ISBN|978-0321205759}})
* 2004. ''JUnit Pocket Guide''. O'Reilly. ({{ISBN|978-0596007430}})
* 2004. ''Extreme Programming Explained: Embrace Change, 2nd Edition''. With Cynthia Andres. Addison-Wesley. Completely rewritten. ({{ISBN|978-0201616415}})
* 2008. ''Implementation Patterns''. Addison-Wesley.  ({{ISBN|978-0321413093}})
* 2023. ''Tidy First?: A Personal Exercise in Empirical Software Design''. O'Reilly.  ({{ISBN|978-1098151249}})

=== Selected papers ===
* 1987. "[http://c2.com/doc/oopsla87.html Using Pattern Languages for Object-Oriented Programs]". With Ward Cunningham. [[OOPSLA]]'87.
* 1989. "[http://c2.com/doc/oopsla89/paper.html A Laboratory For Teaching Object-Oriented Thinking]". With Ward Cunningham. OOPSLA'89.
* 1989. "[https://web.archive.org/web/20150315073817/http://www.xprogramming.com/testfram.htm Simple Smalltalk Testing: With Patterns]". [[SUnit]] framework, origin of [[xUnit]] frameworks.

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==

{{Commons category}}
{{Wikiquote}}
* [[WikiWikiWeb:KentBeck|KentBeck]] on the [[WikiWikiWeb]]
* [http://www.informit.com/content/images/9780321413093/samplechapter/BeckCh_0321413091.pdf Sample chapter of Kent's book, IMPLEMENTATION PATTERNS]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090415171558/http://jonathancrossland.com/post/TalkWare-Episode-2-with-Kent-Beck.aspx TalkWare Podcast interview with Kent Beck]
* [http://twit.tv/floss87 FLOSS Weekly interview with Kent Beck]
* [https://www.facebook.com/kentlbeck?sk=notes Kent Beck's Notes at Facebook]
* [https://stackoverflow.com/a/153565 Kent Beck on unit testing]
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fH4gqsIYzyE Being Human Podcast - A conversation with Kent Beck]
*[https://www.kentbeck.com/ Kent Beck website]

{{Software engineering}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beck, Kent}}
[[Category:Extreme programming]]
[[Category:American technology writers]]
[[Category:University of Oregon College of Arts and Sciences alumni]]
[[Category:1961 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:American software engineers]]
[[Category:Facebook employees]]
[[Category:Software testing people]]
[[Category:Tektronix people]]
[[Category:Engineers from Oregon]]
[[Category:Agile software development]]