Signs that you are a bad programmer • Hacker News Board

Re: Signs that you are a bad programmer

#171

Post by jlembeck » Thu, Oct 20, 2011, 11:47 PM UTC

skrebbel wrote: post #137

What a condescending piece of junk. It serves absolutely no other purpose than to make programmers who do grok everything mentioned feel good about themselves. Worse yet, programmers who could actually benefit from an article like this (i.e. programmers who shouldn't be programmers) won't understand it. E.g. "(Functional) Creating multiple versions of the same algorithm to handle different types or operators, rather…

I think that if somebody just skips over programming-related things that they don't understand, it might be indicative that they are destined to be bad at programming.

Re: Signs that you are a bad programmer

#172

Post by fatalerrorx3 » Fri, Oct 21, 2011, 12:04 AM UTC

Where does the "gets shit done" programmer fit into all of this though? I'll admit that some of my code is confusing and not always "clean" but it does what it's supposed to do, and I'm able to get more "shit done" when I focus on the end goal vision rather than the cleanliness of my code... which in a prototyping phase of product development is really rather meaningless anyway, since you don't even know yet if there's a market for your product/service offering

Re: Signs that you are a bad programmer

#173

Post by clu3 » Fri, Oct 21, 2011, 2:37 AM UTC

Signs that you are a mediocre programmer

Adding columns to tables for tangential data (eg: putting a "# cars owned" column on your address-book table)

I thought this is actually good for performance in different cases? Why is this considered mediocre?

Re: Signs that you are a bad programmer

#174

Post by mrt54321 » Fri, Oct 21, 2011, 8:21 PM UTC

This article is ignorant bullshit. Speaking as someone who's been a professional programmer for a long time, and for a series of good companies. What's present may be technically correct (may), but most of the important stuff is absent. And as for alternative careers for people who are too dumb to progam. Oh please.

Re: Signs that you are a bad programmer

#175

Post by cafard » Wed, Oct 26, 2011, 8:34 PM UTC

hcayce wrote: post #35

rickmb wrote: post #3

The opposite approach is much simpler. There's only one sign that you are a great programmer: Clients and fellow programmers are still happy with your work two years after you've delivered it. (Of course: "still" implies that they we're happy at delivery, which includes actually shipping working software in a timely fashion.)

I wonder if the test is closer to one writers face: you're probably a decent writer if people value your work enough to read it. Likewise, whatever else one can say of programmers, you might be a reasonably decent one if someone else values your work enough to use it. "Reading" and "using" in this case might be similar.

Well, I wonder. As the neighborhood bookclub's pain in the ass (I did not seek the vocation; it found me) I see quite a number of books with great blurbs, and even the occasional award, that I think are very sloppily done. A large number of best sellers seem to scratch an itch widely but briefly felt. Will anybody read _The Da Vinci Code_ in 2025?

Re: Signs that you are a bad programmer

#176

Post by jakejake » Thu, Oct 27, 2011, 9:20 PM UTC

gorbachev wrote: post #135

jakejake wrote: post #116

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In my experience just about everybody fancies themselves a great programmer and considers anybody who doesn't know (insert semi-random list of skills) to be a shitty programmer. I kinda think it's like the Roth test for obscenity. I can't really explain what makes a shitty programmer, but "I know it when I see it."

I don't know about that. Most people I've worked with over the years have understood their limitations and would never consider themselves great, with the possible exception of half a dozen or so folks, who truly are great. There have, of course, been exceptions, too.

My opinion is probably tainted by my own working experiences. I've run into various mediocre IT pros who have been at it for a while and possibly are trying to appear smart for purposes of job security.

I've only had the pleasure of working with a handful of what I considered truly great programmers. I don't think a single one of them considered themselves to be "great" even though I thought they were.

Re: Signs that you are a bad programmer

#177

Post by wnight » Thu, Oct 27, 2011, 10:49 PM UTC

AppSec wrote: post #168

wnight wrote: post #140

Earlier quoted context omitted.

By jumping ship and landing at a less-dysfunctional workplace. If their business plan doesn't include time for improvements of the processes it's a failure. Leave now. Don't try to make up for their mistakes. They won't see it (positively), let alone reward you for it. Do good for your old co-workers by recruiting the good ones into the more-functional company.

Depends on what process you are talking about. If you are trying to improve a process which will hurt the time to deliver of a major project costing a company money, then is it really right to call the company a failure? Every company/division/organization has priorities and while there maybe inefficiencies in their processes, they maybe a minor cost in relation to the other priorities. (I can't believe I actually ju…

No, I stand by it. If a company doesn't include time for process improvement they have failed. Maybe they haven't tanked yet but the first bend in the road will finish them.

This doesn't mean they have to stop and fix every non-problem, but if there's no time budgeted to fix what comes up the first real problem will ruin everything.