The case for boring tools

New tools promise a great deal and document their failures poorly. Older tools have already failed in every interesting way, and someone has written down what to do about it.

Novelty has a budget

Every project can absorb only a little unfamiliarity. Spending it on the part that makes the project special is usually wiser than spending it on the plumbing.

Boring is not the same as bad

A dull tool is often one that has simply finished becoming good. Being uninteresting to talk about can be a sign that it has stopped causing problems.