7.2 Design patterns
Design patterns were derived from ideas put forward by Christopher Alexander (Alexander 1979), who suggested that there were certain common patterns of building design that were inherently pleasing and effective. The pattern is a description of the problem and the essence of its solution, so that the solution may be reused in different settings. The pattern is not a detailed specification. Rather, you can think of it as a description of accumulated wisdom and experience, a well-tried solution to a common problem.
A quote from the Hillside Group website (hillside.net/patterns/), which is dedicated to maintaining information about patterns, encapsulates their role in reuse:
Patterns and Pattern Languages are ways to describe ...
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