Impure Functions vs Deterministic Functions

Developers should learn about impure functions to understand functional programming principles and manage side effects effectively in code, especially in languages like JavaScript, Python, or Haskell meets developers should learn and use deterministic functions to build reliable, testable, and maintainable code, especially in systems requiring consistency, such as financial calculations, data processing pipelines, or caching mechanisms. Here's our take.

Impure Functions

Nice Pick

Developers should learn about impure functions to understand functional programming principles and manage side effects effectively in code, especially in languages like JavaScript, Python, or Haskell

Pros

• They are essential for tasks that inherently involve side effects, such as file handling, database interactions, or user input processing, but should be used judiciously to avoid bugs and improve testability
• Related to: pure-functions, functional-programming

Cons

• Specific tradeoffs depend on your use case

Deterministic Functions

Developers should learn and use deterministic functions to build reliable, testable, and maintainable code, especially in systems requiring consistency, such as financial calculations, data processing pipelines, or caching mechanisms

Pros

• They are crucial in functional programming paradigms, where immutability and pure functions are emphasized, and in SQL databases for optimizing queries and ensuring reproducible results
• Related to: functional-programming, immutability

Cons

• Specific tradeoffs depend on your use case

The Verdict

Use Impure Functions if: You want they are essential for tasks that inherently involve side effects, such as file handling, database interactions, or user input processing, but should be used judiciously to avoid bugs and improve testability and can live with specific tradeoffs depend on your use case.

Use Deterministic Functions if: You prioritize they are crucial in functional programming paradigms, where immutability and pure functions are emphasized, and in sql databases for optimizing queries and ensuring reproducible results over what Impure Functions offers.

The Bottom Line

Impure Functions wins

Developers should learn about impure functions to understand functional programming principles and manage side effects effectively in code, especially in languages like JavaScript, Python, or Haskell