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Keep a programming journal

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Re: Keep a programming journal

#31

Post by brainid »

autotravis wrote: post #26
asynchronous13 wrote: post #10

My background is in Electrical Engineering, and we were always taught to keep a work journal with specific features so it would be a legal document. I just figured they were trying to sell us the more expensive notebooks. That is, until some colleagues were called to court to testify in a patent challenge about the contents of their journals (regarding work from 10 years prior). I take my journal a lot more seriously…

"If the notebook is bound (can't add or remove pages), with pre-numbered pages (proves no pages added or removed)..." Does anyone know of a good place to get an inexpensive (and leatherless) one of these? I would say any notebook would work, but I haven't ran on to many with numbered pages.

The National Brand Computation Notebook is popular. $12 from Amazon.

I have used them for years.

Re: Keep a programming journal

#32

Post by zrail »

I have a web app that I've been using for awhile for this kind of thing. Each note is a markdown document that's versioned in a database. I can create new notes via email (using the excellent Mailgun). There's also a pretty full-featured API which lets me do interesting things with notes.

My original goal for it was as a way to get ideas out of my head and onto "paper". It used to be that I would have an idea and then it would circle around my head for weeks while my subconscious tried to work out all the implications.

The thing I use almost every day, though, is the append API call, which just appends a timestamp and some arbitrary markdown to an existing note. I wrote a little script that appends to a particular note, and I run it automatically after consequential actions at work. I also use it to write journal entries about what I'm working on, both for work and side projects.

I've been meaning to get it fit for public consumption and set up somewhere but I haven't gotten around to it. If anyone wants to give it a test run, let me know. If there's a market I might just try to monitize it :)

Re: Keep a programming journal

#33

Post by mbreese »

Terretta wrote: post #14
kellishaver wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

After switching to a Model M keyboard a few years ago (one that I found in a shed covered in 10yrs of dirt and grease that still worked like new once it was cleaned up), I switched to writing conference call notes on a Mead notebook instead of typing them, because the keyboard was so loud. After a few weeks of this, my handwriting got back to a decent quality and efficiency and now I find that I take notes on paper f…

Beautiful articulation of what's wrong with the iPad.

I think you mean, what the iPad isn't good for... if you try to use it as a notebook, you'll fail. It just isn't very good for that type of application.

I know some people that like to type notes (laptop or tablet), but most people I'm around still take notes with a regular pen and paper.

Then again, I'm a scientist and we are trained from the beginning to keep a good lab notebook. If it isn't in the notebook, it didn't happen!

Re: Keep a programming journal

#34

Post by mbreese »

brainid wrote: post #31
autotravis wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"If the notebook is bound (can't add or remove pages), with pre-numbered pages (proves no pages added or removed)..." Does anyone know of a good place to get an inexpensive (and leatherless) one of these? I would say any notebook would work, but I haven't ran on to many with numbered pages.

The National Brand Computation Notebook is popular. $12 from Amazon. I have used them for years.

Those are my favorite. I used those a ton in grad school and I highly recommend them. The only downside is that they are pretty large.

For my walk-around notebook that I carry to meetings for notes, etc, I use a quad ruled Moleskine. The pages aren't numbered, but they are permanently bound.

Re: Keep a programming journal

#35

Post by stephengillie »

babarock wrote: post #2

As long as we're on this subject, I'd like to strongly encourage programmers to adopt a "pen-and-paper" approach to problem solving. Just like mentionned in the article, there are great benefits coming from actually writing down the problem. For the past year or so, every time I worked on a non-trivial problem, I did it on a sheet of paper. It definitely took discipline at first but now I couldn't do it any other way…

I strongly encourage the "write it down" method of problem solving, aka the Feynman Algorithm. Making a text record is often a good idea, for remembering information as well as solving problems.

I disagree with using paper and a pen. Why spend time drawing these letters out when we can just type them? Is it just a strategy to force yourself to slow down and think about what you're writing? There's nothing magical about manually drawing letters.

Re: Keep a programming journal

#39

Post by arscan »

Johngibb wrote: post #37

I've been doing this as well. Does anyone have advice on pens? This is what I'm currently using and I really like them: http://amzn.com/B0027AEKJ8 they come in a 4 pack of different thicknesses, and are only $12 at Staples. I'm sure there's better however!

I'm anxiously awaiting this pen to arrive:

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/894128597/the-pen-projec...

Sure, its expensive for a pen. But I plan on carrying it around with me everywhere and I wanted a pen that I feel reflects my values and interests.

Re: Keep a programming journal

#40

Post by wonderzombie »

So does anybody have tips about how to take good/useful notes? I feel like my stuff, while organized by topic, ends up being disorganized and quite ad-hoc. I feel like I'm missing out on something since I don't have any real system or technique beyond "write down stuff like you're explaining it to your future self" or some such. Maybe it's enough just to be writing all that down.
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