Evolution of a Programmer
January 29th, 2009
Over the dark, dank winter break I took quite a bit of time to myself to indulge in one of my favourite passtimes that has been sidelined in recent years: reading a good old book. I read a few great works of fiction, The Bridge by Iain Banks standing out particularly, as well as finally getting round to reading Don't Make Me Think, which I am now happily reading again for a module in my course. The funny thing about all this is it really made me excited to code again, often opening up various IDE's and trying out ideas I developed bopping round my head (see this for example). And it started me off on how I've changed as a programmer as well.
Even today, sitting in a Java workshop on my course, the postgrads were impressed with how quickly I was taking to this new language, and to be honest so was I. I've been programming for a little over 2 years now, and I mean scripting languages such as Ruby, PHP, Java rather than more presentational coding such as XHTML and CSS. I remember vividly sitting at my computer writing my first PHP for loop, my first if statement. Being a typical geek, it was a lovely day outside and all. I also remember that first eureka moment when I was jumping into someone's elses code with FusionNews.
Maybe this is how all programmers start out. The methods, the means, the information forraging, jumping into other systems and scatching your head over problems which seem so mundane and ordinary now. Then you build your first system. For me that was probably a small blog or forum from one of the books I've got, but in essence it was the small portfolio and presentation system I made for Webdezign. The next stage I guess in refinement. I've been reading about things like MVC, separating presentation from control, and it makes sense. Before I scoffed at these, but now there are beginning to seem absolutely logical and essential, yearning to be tested. I guess this is what happens, you start off small, learning the techniques, learning, if only theoretically, how to perform all those methods that you saw all the those large sites aspiring to, and then you learn to refine. That is one factor of coding that I find so appealing: there is no truly 'right' way to achieve your goal when you get to the large systems, and therefore you can never afford to stop being creative.
And all I ever set out to do was a PHP include. Gotta love it.
3 Responses to Evolution of a Programmer
Ryan
January 29th, 2009 at 9:58 pm
You know, I think about this a lot. I’m constantly analyzing myself as a programmer, wondering how I could be better. Seeking ways to improve. The thing is, while I’m searching for those answers, they’re being applied everyday.
When I look back at my old scripts, applications, plugins, whatever, I’m immediately sidetracked by how I would do it now. How much better I could make it. A lot of that has to do with trends in this industry, and a lot of it has to do with my creative “mood” so to speak. But I’d say most of it has to do with improved skills because I care about my code.
I’m glad to see other programmers analyzing the “programmer” in them. I think the programmers that neglect self-reflection shouldn’t be in this field. It’s the only true way to define yourself and your talents. Everyone goes through the “just make it work” phase when starting out, but sadly, I know far too many people who are still stuck in that phase. I’m far from perfect (might even say I’m average), but I’m getting to the point now where the challenges aren’t always technically-driven, but they’re more of design and implementation. How creative can I be with this solution? How can I write the best code I possibly can and meet all of the standard needs of the problem?
Long story short, I love how this field is an ongoing challenge, where the challenge is beating out yourself day in and day out. I love being creative, I love design, and I love programming.
Luke
January 30th, 2009 at 1:14 pm
Think you’ve got my current frame of mind right in that statement. The great thing about programming for the web over other mediums as well is that it’s not always a huge thing to look after the back-end and front-end, so you’re rarely drilled into one role, stifling the learning and creativity.
David Sutoyo
January 31st, 2009 at 4:55 am
I’d dare say for most of us who work with the web either as a designer or a programmer, this is how we learn and grow. There really is no substitute for trying, evaluating, then refining. I’m no programmer, but I can see how this parallels with how I started out moving some pixels in Photoshop