Posted by
Scott
on
10. December 2008 04:21
Appreciate the Beauty – Code can be amazingly beautiful. It can be written in five lines to express what could also be written in 20 lines. When I write beautiful code, I will often take a moment to step back and realize what I have just done. You need to do this in life as well. When you complete something that took a long time, step back and appreciate your time spent.
Be In the Now – I have always enjoyed coding. I could "get in a zone" and wouldn’t miss a bracket or a semi-colon. In software development, you need to be in the now. You need to hack away at the code until you get it just right. In life, you need to also figure out how to be in the “now”. You need to live in the present.
Be Honest – Don’t mess around, be truthful to those you work for. Coding is an art, be honest in how you code and what you code. Take shortcuts, but don’t infringe on patents. You will lead a much more satisfying life if you were just an honest person.
Plan ahead – Good programmers don’t just start coding. Think about what you do before you do it. Good coders make sure they have a game plan before they start writing. Even if you’re an extreme programmer, think about what you do, before you do it. In life, you need to ask, "Are the actions your taking now going to work well in the future?"
Picture taken by Amagill
Narrow Your Focus – Code is completed in functions. Something goes into the box and something different comes out of the box. You need to narrow your focus so you write the best functions possible to make you code complete the first time around on that particular function. You need to apply that same level of attention and narrowness of focus to your everyday activities. You could get a lot more done if you jumped into one task or function a time and got that function done and then moved on.
Keep Your Eye On the Ball – To make great code, you have to know what’s at the end of the code. You need to make sure it works well with everything. If you’re an extreme programmer, make sure your correct in all your goals for the next release. It’s the same in life. If I find that I’m not making the progress I want toward my goals, it is usually because I’ve let myself get "busy".
Mind Your Manners – Coders will tolerate a lot from a newbie. They will help him along and make sure he doesn’t screw up, but most coders really don’t appreciate poor etiquette. You should approach everyone in the world that way. Peace on earth is easy if you just gave a bit more common courtesy.
The More You Do It, The Better You’ll Be- "Practice makes perfect" is the mantra every coder should follow. Keep working and you will write better code than before. I look back on old code I wrote and see a vast improvement than what I was doing 2 years ago. How much richer would you be if you practiced better communication, compassion, and empathy?
Leave the Code Better then You Found It – I learned this in Boy scouts very early on. It’s the same with code. If you do a refactor, leave it in better condition than you made it. Write better code than the lines you wrote before. Make it do greater things. You would be a much better friend and person if you made a concentrated effort to leave everything and everyone better than you found them.
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Posted by
Scott
on
4. November 2008 22:34
Have you ever reached the pinnacle of the programmers peak when working on a piece of code while drunk? Have you ever thought: now that's a brilliant piece of code, what the hell did I do last night? From time to time, all programmers will eventually experience the peak. Its called the "Ballmer Peak". Its the moment that your a few beers in with the Blood Alcohol level of .13%-.14% where you just start to write the magical code.
Last night I was writing some good code for customers on one of my pet projects. It involved web services and a bit of Javascript. I was working great until I was a few beers in, when I was truly able to focus anymore. I was talking to one of my fellow peers today at work, and he explained it was the "Ballmer Peak". I guess there is a theory for everything.
Its the theory that computer programmers can obtain a superhuman coding ability with the blood alcohol level between .129% and .138%. It was discovered with Steve Ballmer and coined at the web comic XKCD. The theory came about referencing Steve Ballmer and his crazy acting pretty much what looks like a drunk when ever he is on stage. The theory though is more than what meets the eye. It might actually be somewhat correct in assumption. Have you ever had those nights where you just hacking away at code while having a few beers and you wrote brilliantly? Only to wake up the next morning not able to compile the code you wrote! I have been there many a times and put this theory to the test.
Point of concern that throws this whole theory out the window is that Steve Ballmer never wrote any production code while at Microsoft. He has a background in business and is known for being able to solve difficult math calculations mentally, but not code.
This is one of those theories I don't mind trying over and over again. Someone needs to take the initiative and insert it into Wikipedia.
Programmer's Paradox, which is the lag in creativity behind skill on the inebriation scale.
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