The fallacy of premature optimization
acm.org
acm.org
Underestimating the complexity of a task, like performance tuning or algorithm choice, is not caused by a simple maxim. It is a lack of experience, or a bit of hubris. Programmers are people.
What this article is really about is how people misinterpret the "premature optimization is the root of all evil" quote to mean "never worry about performance at all."