misfeature
/mis-fee'chr/ or /mis'fee"chr/ A feature that eventually causes lossage,
possibly because it is not adequate for a new situation that has evolved. Since
it results from a deliberate and properly implemented feature, a misfeature is
not a bug. Nor is it a simple unforeseen side effect; the term implies that the
feature in question was carefully planned, but its long-term consequences were
not accurately or adequately predicted (which is quite different from not having
thought ahead at all). A misfeature can be a particularly stubborn problem to
resolve, because fixing it usually involves a substantial philosophical change
to the structure of the system involved.
Many misfeatures (especially in user-interface design) arise because the
designers/implementors mistake their personal tastes for laws of nature. Often a
former feature becomes a misfeature because trade-offs were made whose
parameters subsequently change (possibly only in the judgment of the
implementors). "Well, yeah, it is kind of a misfeature that file names are
limited to six characters, but the original implementors wanted to save
directory space and we"re stuck with it for now."
Nearby terms:
MIS « misbug « MIS Director « misfeature »
MISHAP » Missed'em-five » missile address
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