I started on a password database (think KeePass) in Pascal when I was 13. I was so busy with making a functional text user interface (similar to Borland Pascal 7.0), that I didn't get to encrypting the password file. I was just replacing each character in a CSV (not really knowing it was called that) with its ASCII value. Needless to say...
Basically, I have recently started a "pet project" (side project/whatever) working with RESTful APIs that are on the Internet. I have never done this before, and I have found that it has really rekindled my love for programming.. I want to stay up late with it, take it out to dinner and spend more time with it than my friends.. Which is...
What's the most often used reason for not being able to do agile, and is there an argument against it? ...
I've been wondering if there are certain personality types that are drawn to programming. If you've taken this test, please post your types here and I'll compile the results. Update: There have been a few answers regarding the erroneous nature of the results from a Myers Briggs personality test. Please take this into consideration if ...
One of the blogs I read has been going over the fundamentals of Functional programming lately, and it's gotten me a bit more interested. Then, someone posted a question here that seems like a good fit for recursion/functional programming, which got me thinking about Functional languages again. I'd like to learn one, but now I need to p...
My whole department has owned individual copies of ReSharper for about a year, but I find I'm one of only two people that actually use any of its features regularly. I'm trying to get everybody to use it more effectively and would like opinions on the most useful features and their shortcuts so I can share more than just what I use it f...
MIX is the hypothetical computer outlined by Donald Knuth in the Art of Computer Programming. I guess when I say best, I mean most suitable for working with the algorithms and problems in the Art of Computer Programming. ...
What are your favorite ones? ...
What add-in/setting in Visual Studio can you not live without? Which one improves your productivity or fixes something you can't stand in Visual Studio? Why is it your favorite? My favorite is aspx edit helper because it does really improve my productivity when working with ASP.NET applications. What it does is provide a quick way to t...
One of the biggest general productivity boosters I've used is a good program launcher. I was a long-time user of SlickRun, and I've tried a few others. My current favorite is Executor - by far the best I've used. Other options: Executor: My current favorite Vista Start Menu: Pretty good, actually, but Executor is similar (binds to Win...
I'm looking for a decent paid source control solution for a singer-user, great compatibility with Visual Studio 05/08, and less than $70. What is your recommendation? What separates it from the other options available? How well does it scale to multiple users? ...
I am looking for a book or online resource that gives a good overview of the subject, and is also practical for implementing unit testing. The book should be useful for users of different programming languages. ...
What is your single favorite development tool? ...
The best way to learn is by practicing, but it's always good to learn from others who are smarter than you. What is the best example of a well-designed, well coded open-source project? I'm specifically interested in C++ projects, but other exceptional examples would be welcome, as well. ...
Some years ago I was on a panel that was interviewing candidates for a relatively senior embedded C programmer position. One of the standard questions that I asked was about optimisation techniques. I was quite surprised that some of the candidates didn't have answers. So, in the interests of putting together a list for posterity - wha...
Gone are the days of the typical geek with pencils in his pocket, fainting when a girl talks to him. We are partners and parents now too, but also programmers. Before I got married 17 hour work days were not uncommon and I still get those, our industry changes with new features added to our toolbox and we try to keep up. I come home at...
The stereotypical programmer is very keen on writing software in one particular programming language and is very fanatic about defending their programming language in any way they can, without being realistic about whether their programming language is the best tool for the job. The other kind of programmer can take a step back and swit...
I'm interested in understanding why people choose to leverage technology built on the W3C Semantic Web standards. How did you make the decision to use the technology you chose and what does it enable you to do that you identify as being unique to the Semantic Web effort? If you have specifically made the decision not to use Semantic We...
I made a write-up about how to analyze your gmail account data with ruby. Then on SlashDot, someone told me about mail-trends. Does anyone have other tools to suggest ? ...
I've been thinking about exploring functional programming. I'm not even sure what the benefits might be, but I'm curious, and want to learn more. The languages I work with currently are all procedural (python, c#, etc). What's the best language to start with? ...