c'mon!!! it's not all about trust, it's also about the code.
The Number One Trait of a Great Developer
21–30 of 122 posts
Re: The Number One Trait of a Great Developer
#22Dianne's solution creates a maintenance problem if the number of devices grows too much or if network stability is a problem, or if there is an expectation down the line of, for instance, push sync. My point is not that her solution was not valuable, but that to suggest that the maintainability of the two solutions is black and white like this is wrongheaded. The really unfortunate implication here is that learning n…
There's a difference between technology and implementation though. If Dianne had chosen a solution that fundamentally can't scale easily then that is a poor decision, whereas a technology that can scale written in a way that can be upgraded later is much more flexible.
As for the MySQL v Postgre I see that as a sensible Agile decision - much more confidence in quality now, with the knowledge that in the future a move to a different DB is beneficial.
Re: The Number One Trait of a Great Developer
#23This kind of judgement is not a sufficient and not even a necessary trait of great developers. It's nice to have, but 10 such developers will not allow you to build anything better than Dianne's solution.
Many great developers have misjudged their abilities or the practicality of particular ideas and solutions. I won't name (and shame) any, but look for examples among famous game developers.
Re: The Number One Trait of a Great Developer
#24Earlier quoted context omitted.
Because rockstar programmers tend to use the latest technology in bizarre ways which makes for unmaintainable code?
Does "rockstar" mean "bad" in this context? Because "using the latest technology for the sake of it" is not a trait of a good developer, and I have no clue what the hell "rockstar developer" means any more (unless they're also in a major rock band, then I know what it means).
It started out as a term of admiration, but rapidly devolved to one of derision.
Re: The Number One Trait of a Great Developer
#25Dianne knew it wasn't the most elegant solution, but she also knew that anything much more complex would be beyond her current skills.
Since when are complex solutions elegant? I always thought the simple ones were the ones deserving to be called "elegant". Also, the cheapest, fastest, and most reliable components are those that aren't there.
Re: The Number One Trait of a Great Developer
#26Dianne's solution creates a maintenance problem if the number of devices grows too much or if network stability is a problem, or if there is an expectation down the line of, for instance, push sync. My point is not that her solution was not valuable, but that to suggest that the maintainability of the two solutions is black and white like this is wrongheaded. The really unfortunate implication here is that learning n…
Actually, why wouldn't a web service with a mysql server not scale for many orders of magnitude more users than they expect?
Re: The Number One Trait of a Great Developer
#27No, that's the number one trait of a great employee - and the sign of a leader. The number one trait of a great developer is literally their ability to quickly write amazingly elegant code and manage complexity.
No, that's the number one trait of a great employee - and the sign of a leader.
Exercising self-control is being the leader of one person.
Re: The Number One Trait of a Great Developer
#28Dianne's solution creates a maintenance problem if the number of devices grows too much or if network stability is a problem, or if there is an expectation down the line of, for instance, push sync. My point is not that her solution was not valuable, but that to suggest that the maintainability of the two solutions is black and white like this is wrongheaded. The really unfortunate implication here is that learning n…
I agree with you on the faults of his analogy, but the point he is making, holds nevertheless in my opinion.
Re: The Number One Trait of a Great Developer
#29This is normal.
Some people (you call them Rockstars) are interessted in the newest technology and they want to use them to solve problems. No matter how efficient it is or how good somebody can maintain in.
But you forgot one thing: the "Rockstars" use technology, that will be normal for the masses 2 or 3 years later.
Ruby, for the first time, was used by Rockstars too.
It depend on your company and the size, but you need some rockstars and a mass of good developers. The rockstars look for new things, they try them, they show how to use it. The mass of good programmer can look at the results and choose what make a sense to use in productive environmnet.
There is nothing bad with a rockstar programmer, only with people that think they are rockstars and talk like "i am the king baby". ;)
Re: The Number One Trait of a Great Developer
#30Dianne's solution creates a maintenance problem if the number of devices grows too much or if network stability is a problem, or if there is an expectation down the line of, for instance, push sync. My point is not that her solution was not valuable, but that to suggest that the maintainability of the two solutions is black and white like this is wrongheaded. The really unfortunate implication here is that learning n…
> I'd say that something with these requirements would have been a perfect opportunity for Diane to, "learn postgres," if she felt that it would have been better. The extra day or two of effort would likely pay off – if not on this project, then on the next.
Perhaps on a product team but for an agency dealing with clients your time is your money. You spend an extra day or two on the project and the client is getting charged for that. Now they're wondering why we're thousands over their budget when the initial perception was we could work within it.
I'm all for learning new things on the job but that opportunity is only for certain situations.