The Truth About XP Deus, page 6

6. Feature Creep of XP Deus

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Transforming the Deus into primarily a gold-nugget detector, implementing the gold-optimized-only firmware, expanding the existing features and interface, adding new features and a new interface for the pinpointer with a wireless radio link to the Deus - all these activities lead to a controversial effect on the detector.

This effect is called "feature creep" (also "creeping featurism") - "the ongoing expansion of existing features or addition of new features in an electronic device or software program". Feature creep turns a device that, for example, would have performed two or three functions well into an over-engineered device that performs 12 functions, only a few of them up to standard.

In the Deus' case, feature creep has led to doubling the number of features and modes in the detector - from 29 in the V2.0 to a total of 58 in the Deus platform V5.2, not including the operating-frequency offsets, preset programs and those functions, modes and menu options that do not affect the Deus' performance.

As a result of this effect, the reasonably 42-feature-loaded version 3.2 was succeeded by the gold-prioritized version 4.0 that was bloated with extra 12 features going beyond the initial function of the Deus as just a versatile coin/relic detector.

And the before-mentioned 18% of the Deus users were subjected to the complexity (and extra expense) of features requested by 82% of users. Since then, a few extra features have already crept into the subsequent firmware versions 4.1 and 5.0 of the Deus, and the resulting, never-ending patching of the firmware - the bug-fixing "saga", continues...

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