Complex: Does a lot. Usually unavoidable.
Complicated: Difficult to understand.
I like this quote (source):
A complex person is like an iPod. That
is to say that they are consistent,
straightforward and ‘user friendly’
while also being rather sophisticated.
Unlike the complicated person,
interacting with a complex person does
not require special knowledge of their
complicated ways-because their ways
are not complicated. When mistakes are
made, they tend to be very forgiving
because they understand that people
are imperfect. In short, they are
mature, sensible human beings.
and this one (source):
An Airbus A380 is complicated. A
jellyfish is complex. The Paris Metro
network is complicated. How people use
it is complex. Your skeleton is
complicated. You are complex. A
building is complicated. A city is
complex.
Some more articles on this:
- Simple vs. Complicated vs. Complex vs. Chaotic
- More on Complex versus Complicated
