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Being a rock star programmer

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  • D Doctor Nick

    brianwelsch wrote:

    ABP

    Is that like ABC on Glengarry Glen Ross? ;P ------------------------------------- Do not do what has already been done. Absolute power corrupts absolutely.. but it ROCKS absolutely, too.

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    brianwelsch
    wrote on last edited by
    #21

    Nicholas Wigant wrote:

    Glengarry Glen Ross

    Don't think I've ever seen that movie. Helluva a cast, though. I might have to check that out this weekend. BW


    If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the precipitate.
    -- Steven Wright

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    • B brianwelsch

      Nicholas Wigant wrote:

      Glengarry Glen Ross

      Don't think I've ever seen that movie. Helluva a cast, though. I might have to check that out this weekend. BW


      If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the precipitate.
      -- Steven Wright

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      Doctor Nick
      wrote on last edited by
      #22

      ABC, Always Be Closing... ------------------------------------- Do not do what has already been done. Absolute power corrupts absolutely.. but it ROCKS absolutely, too.

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      • P Paul Watson

        Was the code that works your first draft or have you rehashed it a few times? And the code as it is now, are you happy with it in other terms apart from "it works"? regards, Paul Watson Ireland Feed Henry! K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!

        adapted from toxcct:

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        Impega
        wrote on last edited by
        #23

        Get this (sorta shows were I'm comming from) > 10 years ago a prototype was done. > Mgt gave the project the go ahead > The prototype was used as the base implementation :confused: (this is where all the problems stem from) All this was done in another unit of our company, at the time were were application using these services. Last year we transfered this service over here (we now 'own' it), fixed all outstanding bugs, changed a few things for better performance and left it at that. It works so I'm happy (mgt not bugging us, no news is good news) the code is a mess, complete shit, completely over engineered, a nightmare to trace through, maintenance is a pain in the ass. This is why we are rewriting the application. Prototyped it, searious code reduction, performance increase, got the go ahead and currently implementing The prototype is only being used as a reference for the methodoligy behind the use cases and nothing else. Imp. 'Out of Office Auto Reply' The email server is unable to verify your server connection and is unable to deliver this mesage. Please restart your computer and try sending again. '(The beauty of this is that when you return, you can see how many in-du-viduals did this over and over).

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        • P Paul Watson

          The best way to improve is to study code that is better than your own. Read good code written by experts, in a variety of programming languages. Study it until you understand how it works and what makes it good. That's it.

          The One Tip That Rules Them All[^] The IronMonkey claims that the one tip to being a better programmer is the above. To read good code. Anyone care to agree or disagree? (And you can skip his waffle at the begining of the post.) regards, Paul Watson Ireland Feed Henry! K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!

          adapted from toxcct:

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          Dan McCormick
          wrote on last edited by
          #24

          Reading good code of guru's has certainly been a boon to me. I would add the qualification though, that it has served me best when I have spent some time working in the problem domain for a period of time myself. Once I have some experience trying to tackle a problem, seeing truly elegant, efficient solutions really helps boost me to a new level. My two cents... Dan Remember kids, we're trained professionals.
          Don't try this at home!

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          • D Doctor Nick

            ABC, Always Be Closing... ------------------------------------- Do not do what has already been done. Absolute power corrupts absolutely.. but it ROCKS absolutely, too.

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            P Offline
            Paul Watson
            wrote on last edited by
            #25

            Sounds like a financial saying. regards, Paul Watson Ireland Feed Henry! K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!

            adapted from toxcct:

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            • D Dan McCormick

              Reading good code of guru's has certainly been a boon to me. I would add the qualification though, that it has served me best when I have spent some time working in the problem domain for a period of time myself. Once I have some experience trying to tackle a problem, seeing truly elegant, efficient solutions really helps boost me to a new level. My two cents... Dan Remember kids, we're trained professionals.
              Don't try this at home!

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              Paul Watson
              wrote on last edited by
              #26

              I absolutely agree that you have to be in the problem domain to get the most benefit. Once you can map the code you are reading to a mental concept it falls into place. regards, Paul Watson Ireland Feed Henry! K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!

              adapted from toxcct:

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              • D Doctor Nick

                ABC, Always Be Closing... ------------------------------------- Do not do what has already been done. Absolute power corrupts absolutely.. but it ROCKS absolutely, too.

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                Jeremy Falcon
                wrote on last edited by
                #27

                NBC = Nothing But Crap ABC = Anything But Cool CBS = Constantly Broadcasting Shit (I just made that one up) Jeremy Falcon

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                • P Paul Watson

                  Sounds like a financial saying. regards, Paul Watson Ireland Feed Henry! K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!

                  adapted from toxcct:

                  while (!enough)
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                  Doctor Nick
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #28

                  Sales saying. Closing the deal. ------------------------------------- Do not do what has already been done. Absolute power corrupts absolutely.. but it ROCKS absolutely, too.

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                  • P Paul Watson

                    The best way to improve is to study code that is better than your own. Read good code written by experts, in a variety of programming languages. Study it until you understand how it works and what makes it good. That's it.

                    The One Tip That Rules Them All[^] The IronMonkey claims that the one tip to being a better programmer is the above. To read good code. Anyone care to agree or disagree? (And you can skip his waffle at the begining of the post.) regards, Paul Watson Ireland Feed Henry! K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!

                    adapted from toxcct:

                    while (!enough)
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                    Jerry Hammond
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #29

                    I would add that to be a better programmer would be to write better code than your last project... My Programming Library /* You are not expected to understand this */

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                    • M Monty2

                      Write an article and submit it on CP :-D


                      C makes it easy to shoot yourself in the foot; C++ makes it harder, but when you do, it blows away your whole leg

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                      Jerry Hammond
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #30

                      :laugh::laugh::laugh: My Programming Library /* You are not expected to understand this */

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                      • Richard Andrew x64R Richard Andrew x64

                        ihoecken wrote:

                        But there is more than reading code.

                        If you re-read the original post, you will see that it does not say that reading code is the ONLY way. It says that reading code is the best way.

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                        Ingo
                        wrote on last edited by
                        #31

                        Yes I read it. But when it says "reading code is the best way" then I think I just have to read good code, analyse it and then start it for myself. But there is more to do. You can easy learn programming without reading good code, but you the most can't easy learn programming just with reading good code. So, I say: this isn't the best way! Greetings, Ingo ------------------------------ PROST Roleplaying Game War doesn't determine who's right. War determines who's left.

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                        • P Paul Watson

                          The best way to improve is to study code that is better than your own. Read good code written by experts, in a variety of programming languages. Study it until you understand how it works and what makes it good. That's it.

                          The One Tip That Rules Them All[^] The IronMonkey claims that the one tip to being a better programmer is the above. To read good code. Anyone care to agree or disagree? (And you can skip his waffle at the begining of the post.) regards, Paul Watson Ireland Feed Henry! K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!

                          adapted from toxcct:

                          while (!enough)
                          sprintf 0 || 1
                          do

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                          Gary Wheeler
                          wrote on last edited by
                          #32

                          Do what I did today: I managed to have a C++ destructor recursively call itself. This Is A Bad Thing. :sigh:


                          Software Zen: delete this;

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                          • P Paul Watson

                            The best way to improve is to study code that is better than your own. Read good code written by experts, in a variety of programming languages. Study it until you understand how it works and what makes it good. That's it.

                            The One Tip That Rules Them All[^] The IronMonkey claims that the one tip to being a better programmer is the above. To read good code. Anyone care to agree or disagree? (And you can skip his waffle at the begining of the post.) regards, Paul Watson Ireland Feed Henry! K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!

                            adapted from toxcct:

                            while (!enough)
                            sprintf 0 || 1
                            do

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                            Lost User
                            wrote on last edited by
                            #33

                            What are we talking about, coding, programming or software engineering? And what are they? And how do you measure them? Coding: The act of writing code. What is good and bad code? Good layout? Efficient use of stack or heap regarding variable declaration? Good choice of variable and function names so the code reads well? Or speed? Refining an algorithm to perfection? Developing good, logical algorithm? Or is it writing maintenable code? Programming: Is it the same as coding? Is it understanding the platform? Software engineering: Designing the architecture? Modularising the code into logical, reusable chunks? All well and good, but if the customer doesnt like it it is all wasted efort. Getting the product out on time at the right quality and the right price is the only criteria. Nunc est bibendum

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                            • G Gary Wheeler

                              Do what I did today: I managed to have a C++ destructor recursively call itself. This Is A Bad Thing. :sigh:


                              Software Zen: delete this;

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                              Paul Watson
                              wrote on last edited by
                              #34

                              Quite appropriate to your sig then. Trying to think of an instance, already destructed, that is meant to call it's own destructor... regards, Paul Watson Ireland Feed Henry! K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!

                              adapted from toxcct:

                              while (!enough)
                              sprintf 0 || 1
                              do

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                              • L Lost User

                                What are we talking about, coding, programming or software engineering? And what are they? And how do you measure them? Coding: The act of writing code. What is good and bad code? Good layout? Efficient use of stack or heap regarding variable declaration? Good choice of variable and function names so the code reads well? Or speed? Refining an algorithm to perfection? Developing good, logical algorithm? Or is it writing maintenable code? Programming: Is it the same as coding? Is it understanding the platform? Software engineering: Designing the architecture? Modularising the code into logical, reusable chunks? All well and good, but if the customer doesnt like it it is all wasted efort. Getting the product out on time at the right quality and the right price is the only criteria. Nunc est bibendum

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                                P Offline
                                Paul Watson
                                wrote on last edited by
                                #35

                                So you have no opinion then? regards, Paul Watson Ireland Feed Henry! K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!

                                adapted from toxcct:

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                                • P Paul Watson

                                  The best way to improve is to study code that is better than your own. Read good code written by experts, in a variety of programming languages. Study it until you understand how it works and what makes it good. That's it.

                                  The One Tip That Rules Them All[^] The IronMonkey claims that the one tip to being a better programmer is the above. To read good code. Anyone care to agree or disagree? (And you can skip his waffle at the begining of the post.) regards, Paul Watson Ireland Feed Henry! K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!

                                  adapted from toxcct:

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                                  Shog9 0
                                  wrote on last edited by
                                  #36

                                  They're both right.

                                  • You need good tools - if you spend all your time fighting with your tools, you won't spend time improving your skills.
                                  • You need to be a bit introspective - if you can't look critically at your own output and the practices that led to it, you won't be motivated to improve.
                                  • You need to find and recognize work that is better than your own. Looking only at your own code, it's too easy to become blind to alternative ways of doing things better. And if you never read code in languages other than what you use, you'll find it hard to break out of the mindset that your language was written towards.

                                  I was glad to see "#4 Don't learn APIs too well" - as bad as it is to find someone wasting effort re-implementing something that their platform already provides, it's almost as bad to find someone unwilling to attempt a task because their API of choice doesn't provide a clear path to it, or using a convoluted program structure in order to fit with some API or framework (MFC doc/view, i'm looking at you). If you approach a problem with the idea that you'll be writing your own API and then save time by finding bits that are already done, you'll be far happier and more productive.

                                  ---- Scripts i've known... CPhog 0.9.9 - make CP better. Forum Bookmark 0.2.5 - bookmark forum posts on Pensieve Print forum 0.1.1 - printer-friendly forums

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                                  • P Paul Watson

                                    The best way to improve is to study code that is better than your own. Read good code written by experts, in a variety of programming languages. Study it until you understand how it works and what makes it good. That's it.

                                    The One Tip That Rules Them All[^] The IronMonkey claims that the one tip to being a better programmer is the above. To read good code. Anyone care to agree or disagree? (And you can skip his waffle at the begining of the post.) regards, Paul Watson Ireland Feed Henry! K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!

                                    adapted from toxcct:

                                    while (!enough)
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                                    DaveTheDude
                                    wrote on last edited by
                                    #37

                                    One must know the client or it would be like knowing a language in another country, but not knowing the culture. It also implies that you could become a master chief by just reading a cook book which is clearly not the case. We have a validation error here (-: David David

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                                    • P Paul Watson

                                      The best way to improve is to study code that is better than your own. Read good code written by experts, in a variety of programming languages. Study it until you understand how it works and what makes it good. That's it.

                                      The One Tip That Rules Them All[^] The IronMonkey claims that the one tip to being a better programmer is the above. To read good code. Anyone care to agree or disagree? (And you can skip his waffle at the begining of the post.) regards, Paul Watson Ireland Feed Henry! K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!

                                      adapted from toxcct:

                                      while (!enough)
                                      sprintf 0 || 1
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                                      JohnMcPherson1
                                      wrote on last edited by
                                      #38

                                      Reading good code is meaningless. For someone without talent it is as Solomon once said "a chasing after the wind...". Without ability it cannot be done. Without desire there is no need to do it. Being a rock start programmer requires three things: 1. Talent 2. Ability 3. Desire If you have the talent with the ability driven by desire you will become a rock star programmer. Regards, John McPherson "Sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." Arthur C. Clark, inventor of the telecommunications satellite

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                                      • I Ingo

                                        Troposphere wrote:

                                        Nobody said that reading good code would turn just anybody into a good programmer. It is a given that the advice refers to people who are already programmers, have significant talent, AND have the motivation to improve their skills.

                                        No of course not. But there is more than reading code. You need background information. Programming is like writing not only practice. There is a theoretical part. Of course there are writers and programmers who learned it just by reading, but the most have to do more. Otherwise nobody would have to go to a university. Greetings, Ingo ------------------------------ PROST Roleplaying Game War doesn't determine who's right. War determines who's left. -- modified at 8:26 Thursday 30th March, 2006

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                                        Polymorpher
                                        wrote on last edited by
                                        #39

                                        I Would agree 100%...i have never been to school for programing and i have a good job doing it www.aes4you.com[^] I was in prison for 5 years and i taught myself by reading books. I got out April 1st (perfect day lol) and got a job within a few months of being out...not because of a degree but because i have read so much code and so many books that I just know what im doing. I can program in 12 languages profesionaly, and know enough of others that i could use them profesionaly givin a short amount of time to review them. Pablo

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                                        • P Paul Watson

                                          The best way to improve is to study code that is better than your own. Read good code written by experts, in a variety of programming languages. Study it until you understand how it works and what makes it good. That's it.

                                          The One Tip That Rules Them All[^] The IronMonkey claims that the one tip to being a better programmer is the above. To read good code. Anyone care to agree or disagree? (And you can skip his waffle at the begining of the post.) regards, Paul Watson Ireland Feed Henry! K(arl) wrote: oh, and BTW, CHRISTIAN ISN'T A PARADOX, HE IS A TASMANIAN!

                                          adapted from toxcct:

                                          while (!enough)
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                                          glitch177k
                                          wrote on last edited by
                                          #40

                                          I'm not sure that counts as a ROCK star programmer. I mean, rock is all about being loud and a little bit crazy. So pristine perfect code doesn't seem very rock n roll to me.... And I'm pretty sure to be a rock star programmer you would have to code in all caps to emphasize the loudness. And a punk rock programmer would be all about the open source "do it yourself" languages. I could go on all day with this stuff.... ;)

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