Just a story from the trenches, but it
probably demonstrates the idea.

I had to design a real-time
financial market data-feed
upgrade, but we were running
into serious platform constraints.
So I picked up a Berkeley Unix 4.2
manual, found out about sockets,
and quietly (also see SneakInNewTechnologies and RunSilentRunDeep)
implemented the system in full client/server
style. My boss had told me to
'not bother' when I had suggested
it, but using rsh across machines
and stdin and stdout was ''not''
going to cut it.

When I had it done, I inquired when
we could cut over to the new system.
The reaction was: 'What new system?'

'Oh, the one I just finished and tested.'
Shortly afterward, the new system became
not only the backbone of the real-time
quote system, but served to template a
number of other very successful client/server
applications.

Sneaky at the time, but my
boss could not argue with a system that
worked, especially when it solved problems
he was just putting off.

--DavidCymbala

----

See ProofInPuddingEtymology