Is XP a collection of practices which should be followed as much as possible, because programming teams get better results when they do all the practices diligently?  Or are they "etudes" - practices to study, but not necessarily to implement in all circumstances because they're just goals to strive for in a more abstract manner?  Is it really XP if you only do half the practices, some of the time? What if that was all you could get away with in the current management environment?

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''Or are they "etudes" - practices to study, but not necessarily to implement in all circumstances because they're just goals to strive for in a more abstract manner?''

That may depend how far along the ShuHaRi path you are. The practices exist as concrete expressions of the fundamental values of XP. What is truly important is not that the specific practices themselves are followed, but that the underlying goals are achieved. (For instance, that the CustomerBillOfRights and the DeveloperBillOfRights are satisfied.) -- MikeSmith

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I would hope that they are ''etudes'' and then ''practices''. The fine distinction here is not, as above, that they are required or optional. The fine distinction here is that you must learn before you choose, master before you criticize. I've witnessed (nay, participated in) far too many hypothetical conversations about whether this or that practice helps, hurts or just lays there. The first important question to ask is "Can you do this?" Have you learned the skills of programming in pairs? Have you learned the skills of refactoring? Have you learned the skills of project management? I surmise that in the majority of cases, the assertion "X doesn't work" is another devious way of saying "I don't know how to do X, therefore I can't imagine making it work.  Instead, let's talk about what I ''do'' know how to do."

Etudes are pleasant studies for study's sake.  When you master a Chopin etude, you've overtrained yourself in some aspect of pianoforte technique such that deciding what to play or not to play becomes a decision with more choices.  Etudes are looking better and better to me.

~- WaldenMathews

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Etude is my preferred metaphor. It helps to describe the process of establishing a technically proficient foundation to be used in a creative act.

The more the etudes are committed to muscle memory, the less conscientious the artist will be of technique. This is the zone where artists and craftsman strive to work.

This metaphor requires some faith in GestaltPhilosophy, where the whole is considered to be greater than the sum of its parts.

-- MichaelLeach