"Residues" & "The Architect’s Paradox" • Barry O'Reilly & Jacqui Read • GOTO 2025

This interview was recorded for the GOTO Book Club. #GOTOcon #GOTObookclub http://gotopia.tech/bookclub Read the full transcription of the interview here: https://gotopia.tech/episodes/369 Barry O'Reilly - Founder at Black Tulip Tech and Author of “Residues” & “The Architect’s Paradox” Jacqui Read - Software Architect, Speaker & Author of "Communication Patterns" @JacquiRRead RESOURCES Barry https://bsky.app/profile/technologytulip.bsky.social https://www.linkedin.com/in/barry-o-reilly-b924657 https://www.blacktulip.se Jacqui https://bsky.app/profile/tekiegirl.bsky.social https://jacquiread.com https://fosstodon.org/@tekiegirl https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacquelineread https://github.com/tekiegirl Links https://youtu.be/LTFe7Zj-hzQ https://youtu.be/y77wBeYwhfw https://youtu.be/8Y-XPlXOWoA https://youtu.be/Gt9ZuHGpKbI https://youtu.be/8KntBPOdfWA https://youtu.be/trsDnGh-x4U https://youtu.be/TXvaa26UUZU https://youtu.be/XShcmCBK93E https://youtu.be/y30jmDB7QLc DESCRIPTION In this GOTO Book Club interview, Jacqui Read discusses with Barry O'Reilly his books "Residues: Time, Uncertainty, and Change in Software Architecture" and "The Architect's Paradox". He explains how uncertainty defines the architect's role and introduces residuality—a method where architects deliberately stress their conceptual models until they collapse, then optimize the resulting "residues" or leftovers to create more resilient systems. Unlike traditional software engineering approaches, that try to eliminate uncertainty through rigid requirements, residuality embraces random stressors (even far-fetched scenarios like giant lizards) to uncover architectural fault lines. O'Reilly argues that this playful yet mathematically sound approach produces more robust architectures than conventional methods, and his second book explores how inherited philosophical thinking often undermines software architecture's effectiveness in complex business contexts. TIMECODES 00:00 Intro 00:56 Genesis of the residuality book 09:00 The role of uncertainty in software architecture 16:56 Explaining residuality 22:20 Fun with random stressors 29:39 From playfulness to robust design 35:13 The Architect's Paradox explained 40:28 Outro RECOMMENDED BOOKS Barry O'Reilly • Residues • https://leanpub.com/residuality Barry O'Reilly • The Architect’s Paradox • https://leanpub.com/architectsparadox Jacqui Read • Communication Patterns • https://amzn.to/3E37lvv Anne Currie & Jamie Dobson • The Cloud Native Attitude • https://amzn.to/3R0exeT Gregor Hohpe • The Software Architect Elevator • https://amzn.to/3F6d2ax Gregor Hohpe • Enterprise Integration Patterns, Vol 2 • https://amzn.to/3TNedQ3 https://bsky.app/profile/gotocon.com https://twitter.com/GOTOcon https://www.linkedin.com/company/goto- https://www.instagram.com/goto_con https://www.facebook.com/GOTOConferences #SoftwareArchitecture #Residues #Residuality #ComplexityScience #RobustDesign #uncertainty #RandomStrossors #Playfulness #TechCommunication #SoftwareDesign #SoftwareEngineering #Programming #BarryOReilly #JacquiRead #tekiegirl #BookClub CHANNEL MEMBERSHIP BONUS Join this channel to get early access to videos & other perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCs_tLP3AiwYKwdUHpltJPuA/join Looking for a unique learning experience? Attend the next GOTO conference near you! Get your ticket at https://gotopia.tech Sign up for updates and specials at https://gotopia.tech/newsletter SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL - new videos posted almost daily. https://www.youtube.com/user/GotoConferences/?sub_confirmation=1