Feature creep or scope creep is what happens when a project (usually software) spirals out of control and starts to have features added to it that were not intended, were not in the original design, or were not paid for. Feature creep usually results in bad times for the builders of the project as well as the company they work for.
Feature creep is generally a result of poor management or a bad idea, in which nobody had the balls to say "no" to either the bad design in the first place, or to the guy who wanted to add the features (which can be as often one of the people building it as one of the people paying for it).
Feature creep has made its way into the public arena as mission creep, to describe a political or military adventure that has gone out of control in the same way, for the same reasons.
Feature creep is generally a result of poor management or a bad idea, in which nobody had the balls to say "no" to either the bad design in the first place, or to the guy who wanted to add the features (which can be as often one of the people building it as one of the people paying for it).
Feature creep has made its way into the public arena as mission creep, to describe a political or military adventure that has gone out of control in the same way, for the same reasons.
I would have been out partying this weekend, but thanks to feature creep, I was working all weekend instead.
by Severian July 8, 2004
Get the feature creep mug.A term used for accounts that only use the feature section on Ifunny, users who get called this usually get way too mad, acting as if you just called them a racial slur.
by Hymen Buster IV October 26, 2020
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Phenomenon whereby a software package gains many more features than originally intended.
Generally the product of optimistic programmers or overambitious managers, feature creep is generally considered a bad thing. Feature creep makes a program that would have done one thing well into a program that does ten things, all poorly. Microsoft Outlook suffers badly from feature creep.
Generally the product of optimistic programmers or overambitious managers, feature creep is generally considered a bad thing. Feature creep makes a program that would have done one thing well into a program that does ten things, all poorly. Microsoft Outlook suffers badly from feature creep.
Her: Oh, we could add TCP/IP remote management!
Him: We need to make sure it has a standard SNMP interface. And metrics analysis.
Me: Watch out for feature creep - it's only a screen saver.
Him: We need to make sure it has a standard SNMP interface. And metrics analysis.
Me: Watch out for feature creep - it's only a screen saver.
by Nacho Dan July 8, 2004
Get the feature creep mug.Feature ransoming is the act of withholding crucial functionality from users of website publishing software or platforms, in order to extract more money from the users. Sometimes this is done by tiers called plans. The lowest tier like "free" with have scantly the bare minimum of features while the highest tier, usually "business" holds the best and most useful features at hundreds of dollars per year.
"I don't know which web platform to use when they all engage in feature ransoming and none offer a newbie like me any good features at affordable prices."
by MeaniePooPie May 10, 2021
Get the feature ransoming mug.In contracting (particularly Software Development), the natural tendency of the customer to continually request small additions which were not part of the original specifications, gradually reaching critical mass.
Dilbert: "Your requirements call for 4000 features! You realize that no Human would be able to operate a product with this level of complexity?"
Customer: "Good point. I'd better add 'easy to use' to the list."
Customer: "Good point. I'd better add 'easy to use' to the list."
by Joe Gallagher July 9, 2004
Get the feature creep mug.using a feature of something (device, website, etc.) for a purpose it wasn't meant for, to the point where it irritates other people.
by krist0ph3r January 29, 2009
Get the feature abuse mug.A dangerous disease of writing software: the original set of features is constantly added to by the product managers, driving the software engineers batty and causing massive delays in release of the product.
by Luigi July 9, 2004
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