“Bikeshedding” is the futile expenditure of time and resources on marginal elements of an important technical decision. It’s based on a hypothetical story about a local planning organization tasked with reviewing plans for a nuclear power plant. They are overwhelmed by the cost and engineering of this advanced technological project, and instead focus on details of the bike shed proposed for plant employees.

Historian C. Northcote Parkinson noted the phenomenon in 1957. “The time spent on any item of the agenda will be in inverse proportion to the sum [of money] involved,” Parkinson said.

The idea of bikeshedding became popular in the open source community, which is where I encountered it.

I have been lately overwhelmed by organizing retirement, our estates, finances, decluttering the house and so on. Also, I’ve been dissatisfied with the dental floss I’ve been using. However, I have researched options thoroughly and I believe I’ve arrived at a satisfactory alternative floss.