> I agree with the article, but to be fair, all software aims to simplify a task. So calling a procedure "simple" is usually done in comparison with what used to be more difficult/complicated.
It follows that calling anything "simple" is redundant. Either it's implied (i.e. "of course it should be simple, otherwise I'd just use X"), or it's wrong. Indicating the difficulty of anything has no place in any technical text.
You dropped the context of the discussion. We aren’t talking about machines, but humans.
That is a different usage of the word “difficulty”, meaning something requiring more work to achieve an outcome, but that is not the relevant meaning in this context.
In the context of this discussion, “difficulty” is being used to describe the level of significant and sustained focused mental effort to grasp and integrate a new concept into one’s existing body of knowledge.
It follows that calling anything "simple" is redundant. Either it's implied (i.e. "of course it should be simple, otherwise I'd just use X"), or it's wrong. Indicating the difficulty of anything has no place in any technical text.