A high tolerance for frustration helps.
Ask HN: Essential skill needed to be a programmer?
51–60 of 193 posts
Re: Ask HN: Essential skill needed to be a programmer?
#52- Communication skills Being able to clearly explain why your solution will solve a given problem better than the alternative and listen to your colleagues when their suggestion is better than yours, will save you an incredible amount of frustration. It is in my opinion the most important skill I have learned - Asking why when debugging Finding the code that's causing a bug is only the first step. The next is prevent…
>99% of bugs are there because there wasn't time to do things better
For a very narrow definition of 'better', maybe. I'd argue most bugs are there because the cost of a bug is less than the cost of developer time it's take to prevent such bugs. There are industries where the cost of a bug is very high, but mostly bugs are like unemploymency rates: it's almost never economically feasible to get them down to zero.
Re: Ask HN: Essential skill needed to be a programmer?
#53"The want to create something"
Re: Ask HN: Essential skill needed to be a programmer?
#54To simply be a programmer, one must only write a program, nothing more. The essential skill I guess would be literacy, knowing how to read and follow directions, knowing how to use a keyboard, not much. To be a good programmer, if I have to pick only one "skill" I would pick systemic thinking/understanding. This starts with the ability to learn and eventually understand how a system works. The next level is the abili…
literally true!
I agree - so much of our time is spent coming up with working models of systems
Re: Ask HN: Essential skill needed to be a programmer?
#55- Communication skills Being able to clearly explain why your solution will solve a given problem better than the alternative and listen to your colleagues when their suggestion is better than yours, will save you an incredible amount of frustration. It is in my opinion the most important skill I have learned - Asking why when debugging Finding the code that's causing a bug is only the first step. The next is prevent…
I don't know the sense of OP, but there's a difference between 'programming' and 'software development'--the latter is done in a team. Often the terms are used interchangeably but the skills to make one a good solo software writer only overlap with developing in a group.
I intended it to be pretty open ended. Mostly interested in skills that are useful for _both_ solo and team work. I agree that there are some things that can be very useful for team work that are not as essential for solo work when it comes to programming. For example, being able to justify technical decisions to higher ups. Lots of communication skills are essential for teamwork.
Re: Ask HN: Essential skill needed to be a programmer?
#56Pessimism. Expect everything that can fail to fail and code defensively to deal with it gracefully. Doesn't make you much of a joy to work with though
reminds me of http://threevirtues.com/
Re: Ask HN: Essential skill needed to be a programmer?
#57- Communication skills Being able to clearly explain why your solution will solve a given problem better than the alternative and listen to your colleagues when their suggestion is better than yours, will save you an incredible amount of frustration. It is in my opinion the most important skill I have learned - Asking why when debugging Finding the code that's causing a bug is only the first step. The next is prevent…
>99% of bugs are there because there wasn't time to do things better For a very narrow definition of 'better', maybe. I'd argue most bugs are there because the cost of a bug is less than the cost of developer time it's take to prevent such bugs. There are industries where the cost of a bug is very high, but mostly bugs are like unemploymency rates: it's almost never economically feasible to get them down to zero.
I think we're saying the same thing in two different ways, so I agree with your point. What I'm reading is a good "why" - why wasn't there time to prevent this bug.
Better is a subjective word, so I think I could have made my point more clear by instead writing "99% of bugs are there because there wasn't allocated enough time to prevent them"
Do you agree more with that statement than the one I originally posted? :)
Re: Ask HN: Essential skill needed to be a programmer?
#58The ability to learn and adapt. The first few years as a programmer you are going ton have a billion aha! moments. At every turn you will think you are a bad ass, only to be humbled. Have an open mind ready to learn and adapt.
Re: Ask HN: Essential skill needed to be a programmer?
#59There are many skills (curiosity, persistence, willingness to improve, etc) but IMO the most essential is being able to deal with your own frustration.
when I get frustrated that's often a cue for me to take a break haha. It's been a nice way to deal with frustration for me.
Re: Ask HN: Essential skill needed to be a programmer?
#60I would say curiosity..
I think some of my favorite programmers exhibit this quality in spades