Proposing that code should be simple, brief, and elegant is not insightful. This is like a lawmaker saying: "Don't worry about writing down laws, let's simply always be just! It's easy!" It's not that easy. The details matter.
Codification and standardization are powerful tools that our entire civilization relies on. They minimize variation, thereby easing communication between interacting parties. If everyone is on the same page, it's simpler to express complex ideas. That's the whole point of writing coding standards.
Coding standards minimize superficial variation (where do the curly braces go? how do I format variable names?) so that we can talk about things that matter (how should this algorithm work? what are the side effects of this function?).
Of course, the other end of the spectrum is important too. Variation promotes innovation and creativity. It's cliche, but I think you have to find the right balance between codification and individual intuition. In addition, you should be willing to modify coding standards occasionally (just like all standards are revised and improved over time).
Codification and standardization are powerful tools that our entire civilization relies on. They minimize variation, thereby easing communication between interacting parties. If everyone is on the same page, it's simpler to express complex ideas. That's the whole point of writing coding standards.
Coding standards minimize superficial variation (where do the curly braces go? how do I format variable names?) so that we can talk about things that matter (how should this algorithm work? what are the side effects of this function?).
Of course, the other end of the spectrum is important too. Variation promotes innovation and creativity. It's cliche, but I think you have to find the right balance between codification and individual intuition. In addition, you should be willing to modify coding standards occasionally (just like all standards are revised and improved over time).