> by making a rule of praising alternate solutions and criticising your own, the discussions move clear of the realm of personal preference and bias. It's simply a discussion of what is right, and when.
How strict should this rule be? Where does it end, and where does legitimate criticism begin?
It is an illusion that people can simply talk about "what is right and when" without getting caught up in biases. Biases just get subtler and therefore more difficult to catch. Everyone who strongly favors one or another solution does so because they think it's the right solution, not merely because it's their favorite solution. You can't escape that by simply declaring that you're going to talk about what the right solution is. Meanwhile, people are often incapable of seeing all the shortcomings of their favorite idea, because it's their favorite idea. When that happens, you need other people to criticize it for you.
A rule that tells you to criticize your own idea and flaunt the benefits of other ideas could lead to suboptimal solutions when people try too hard to please one another and not all of the shortcomings are identified. What if you know that the other guy's solution will break down in an edge case that he seems to be totally oblivious of? The proposed rules of the discussion subtly discourages, if not prohibits, you from mentioning it until a later time when it might be too late. Of course you shouldn't be a hothead all the time. But if the only alternative is to express your discontent in a passive-aggressive, underhanded manner, how is that better than, for example, using Crocker's Rules [1] ?
But I guess it ultimately depends on the personalities of the people involved. If you've got a bunch of hotheads, maybe they really need to cool down and start thinking positively. But there are always some people who are really good at spotting problems but who are afraid to hurt anyone's feelings. You really don't want to discourage them any further.
I suspect the point is that "following the rule" will lead to introspection and self-criticism. Obviously rote adherence to any rule set isn't going to lead to good design by itself.
As a rule you should be capable of introspection and you should look at what works and when for other peoples design.
Regarding following it "strictly", depends on the circumstances. If a new designer joins the team, and doesn't do it, they should be let know. If someone's design is universally regarded as the absolute best and a masterpiece, sure skip the crit and move on.
How strict should this rule be? Where does it end, and where does legitimate criticism begin?
It is an illusion that people can simply talk about "what is right and when" without getting caught up in biases. Biases just get subtler and therefore more difficult to catch. Everyone who strongly favors one or another solution does so because they think it's the right solution, not merely because it's their favorite solution. You can't escape that by simply declaring that you're going to talk about what the right solution is. Meanwhile, people are often incapable of seeing all the shortcomings of their favorite idea, because it's their favorite idea. When that happens, you need other people to criticize it for you.
A rule that tells you to criticize your own idea and flaunt the benefits of other ideas could lead to suboptimal solutions when people try too hard to please one another and not all of the shortcomings are identified. What if you know that the other guy's solution will break down in an edge case that he seems to be totally oblivious of? The proposed rules of the discussion subtly discourages, if not prohibits, you from mentioning it until a later time when it might be too late. Of course you shouldn't be a hothead all the time. But if the only alternative is to express your discontent in a passive-aggressive, underhanded manner, how is that better than, for example, using Crocker's Rules [1] ?
But I guess it ultimately depends on the personalities of the people involved. If you've got a bunch of hotheads, maybe they really need to cool down and start thinking positively. But there are always some people who are really good at spotting problems but who are afraid to hurt anyone's feelings. You really don't want to discourage them any further.
[1] http://www.sl4.org/crocker.html