banana problem

n. [from the story of the little girl who said I know how to spell banana ,
but I don't know when to stop ]. Not knowing where or when to bring a
production to a close (compare fencepost error ). One may say there is a
banana problem of an algorithm with poorly defined or incorrect termination
conditions, or in discussing the evolution of a design that may be
succumbing to featuritis (see also creeping elegance , creeping featuritis
).  See item 176 under HAKMEM , which describes a banana problem in a
Dissociated Press implementation.  Also, see one-banana problem for a
superficially similar but unrelated usage.

