Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

What it feels like to be in the zone as a programmer

dopeboy.github.io

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

111–116 of 116 posts

Re: What it feels like to be in the zone as a programmer

#111

Post by sherkaner »

EdgarVerona wrote: post #59

Getting in the zone is something exhilarating for me - I experience euphoria, though I don't really notice the feeling until after it's over or if I get broken out of it. It was actually something that as of late has started to disturb me: I notice that I live for moments like that, when I get in the zone and the whole world melts away. I feel like a junkie seeking a high, and thinking back on my youth and how destru…

I'm completely opposite. I was playing chess from the childhood, and started programming only in the university. As a result, I'm addicted to chess, but not to programming. It is ridiculously hard for me to get in a zone while working, while I can play chess non-stop for hours and hours without noticing the time flying by. I'd love to reverse chess and programming....

Re: What it feels like to be in the zone as a programmer

#112

Post by calafrax »

majewsky wrote: post #87
calafrax wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

pair programming is an anti-process. its only purpose is to control employees, limit individual productivity, and drive down wages.

> drive down wages Yeah, because everyone knows that you have to pay less wages when you have two people do the job of one.

Sure you do. Two mediocre programmers working as a pair might get 100k each. One elite programmer can clear 7 figures easily. The elite programmer will also have much more control over the IP they create and be able to negotiate much more stringent terms for how it is used.

If you think pair programming is a good idea you are just at the bottom of the industry.

Re: What it feels like to be in the zone as a programmer

#113

Post by QuercusMax »

dozzie wrote: post #110
askafriend wrote: post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The style of work you described sounds like torture to me. I don't know why the idea of TDD sounds so terrible to me but it does.

Because it sounds like "start with tests, design and plan never". Too often tests-first is a substitute for a thought-out architecture and data flow.

That's certainly true; but when you've done your homework, it can be a really great experience.

For example: the past 3 weeks I've been pounding out tons of code in a TDD fashion. But prior to that:

* I spent a week writing up a detailed design document and getting feedback from teammates and stakeholders.

* Another week refactoring (TRULY refactoring; no changes to functionality) the existing implementation so I can reuse the existing work in my new implementation.

Re: What it feels like to be in the zone as a programmer

#114

Post by bussierem »

calafrax wrote: post #112
majewsky wrote: post #87

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> drive down wages Yeah, because everyone knows that you have to pay less wages when you have two people do the job of one.

Sure you do. Two mediocre programmers working as a pair might get 100k each. One elite programmer can clear 7 figures easily. The elite programmer will also have much more control over the IP they create and be able to negotiate much more stringent terms for how it is used. If you think pair programming is a good idea you are just at the bottom of the industry.

> One elite programmer can clear 7 figures easily

Can I come live in this fantasy world you found yourself in please? You're gonna need to provide some SERIOUS proof for a claim like that...

Re: What it feels like to be in the zone as a programmer

#115

Post by xaedes »

wavefunction wrote: post #76
xaedes wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Also: The Tao of Programming [1] 4.4 Prince Wang's programmer was coding software. His fingers danced upon the keyboard. The program compiled without and error message, and the program ran like a gentle wind. "Excellent!" the Prince exclaimed. "Your technique is faultless!" "Technique?" said the programmer, turning from his terminal, "What I follow is Tao -- beyond all techniques! When I first began to program, I wou…

"without and error message" I did enjoy the story though.

Actually didn't realize this until you pointed it out. It is written like that in the original. I like to interpreted it as a hilarious self-referencing pun^^

Re: What it feels like to be in the zone as a programmer

#116

Post by geeio »

tekromancr wrote: post #66

I haven't been in the zone for months. It's mostly general dissatisfaction with my job, but it's gotten worse of late. On an average day, there will be 4 hours of calls spread an hour or less apart for the first half of the day, with the potential for surprise calls for the rest of the day. The irony is that a lot of these calls are about why things aren't getting done. The surprise calls are the worst. Even if I mig…

I think hours per week "in the zone" is a nice proxy for measuring how happy I am in a job
Post reply on HN