Corollaries
In time, however, the first-referenced meaning of the phrase has dominated, and sprouted several corollaries: for example, the derivative relating to computers:
- Data expands to fill the space available for storage.
or
- Storage requirements will increase to meet storage capacity.
In terms of computer executable code filling CPU resource (see software bloat), a similar law is Wirth's law.
A second aphorism, attributed to Parkinson and sometimes called "Parkinson's second law", is "expenditures rise to meet income".
A modern version is that no amount of computer automation will reduce the size of a bureaucracy.
The Stock-Sanford Corollary to Parkinson's Law reads, "If you wait until the last minute, it only takes a minute to do." If a task can expand to fill the time allotted, then conversely, the effort given can be limited by limiting the allotted time, down to a minimum amount of time actually required to complete the task. This phrase is often associated with procrastination.
Horstman's Corollary to Parkinson's Law - "Work contracts to fit into the time you give it."
Read more about this topic: Parkinson's Law