Title says it all... Mine is "Never stop learning"... :)
You're taking all the fun out of it! :)
kirk.burleson
2010-07-23 23:53:58
...stupid. In my Software Engineering class I was thinking to leave the last part out, to avoid hurt my students sensibilities but I realize that the las part is the important part, other way people may thing they can got away with it without being call stupids.
levhita
2008-09-20 03:49:51
levhita
2008-09-20 03:50:55
Ive always rememberd this as "The KISS method" : "Keep it simple, stupid"
Neil N
2009-02-13 20:20:36
An Austrian programmer once explained to me that he thought that "KISS" meant "keep it subtle and sophisticated."
Cylon Cat
2009-11-22 14:02:24
+4
A:
"Don't be a language snob. Use whatever works or whatever your customer wants and is willing to pay for."
MikeCroucher
2008-09-17 10:12:18
Oh man, I hate when people use this quote to defend crappy software that really doesn't follow this.
Rorschach
2009-10-14 20:54:15
+20
A:
Nothing is complicated!
Complicated = a bunch of simple things mixed together.
Break it down.
Then make it simple.
This goes with steve.off.myopenid.com's answer.
ThatBloke
2008-09-17 10:16:03
+2
A:
KISS, Refactoring, Redesign if needed, Create test cases and when another problem appears add it to your test cases, Ask a friend when you're in trouble.
Communication has no.1 importance in a big project and not only.
Iulian Şerbănoiu
2008-09-17 10:16:22
+22
A:
"If you need a motto, you're doing it wrong."
Not a dig at the person who posed the question on here, it was asked offline at my old work place a while ago and with the suggestion that "all good developers have a motto" I replied with the above. Good developers tend to have sound-bites that are bandied around, as they tend to be good at being succinct. I tend to avoid mottos.
Good developers are clever and creative. Coming up with mottos is something that just comes naturally to clever/creative people (hence why most famous/influential people in history have often-quoted mottos/witticisms). However, I'm neither clever or creative, so I just repeat other people's mottos.
Lèse majesté
2010-09-02 09:59:50
+4
A:
This has made me program crazy stuff for it's, well, crazy and fun.
Like the Jupiter ACE emulator in 3D or a dancing Steve Jobs in iTunes or a 3D modeling app for the Palm
I also have another one:
"If you want something done you'll have to do it yourself"
epatel
2008-09-17 10:19:07
Well, Actually the last motto is not that much true. I mean it may be true but you can't generalize that for all humans.
Braveyard
2009-11-23 02:08:11
I have a good one for this, but I know I'll get flagged or kicked off SO. Playing it safe... :(
kirk.burleson
2010-07-24 00:03:41
+72
A:
My job is not to program. My job is to provide business value. I happen to do that by programming sometimes. More frequently, I do it by not programming.
Patrick McKenzie
2008-09-17 10:20:27
wow, these guys are grouchy. Are they like this to you on Business of Software forum too?
Leigh Caldwell
2008-09-18 13:11:26
Screw business value, my job is to have fun. I have fun by programming. If it weren't fun, I'd be doing something else.
ephemient
2008-10-30 19:12:01
That would sound good in an interview. Sorry to be so rude, but it's the kind of sucking up that will appeal to many employers. My job IS to program, that is, to be on the receiving end of a problem, and solve it, programmatically or sometimes otherwise. To be a programmer is to be a problem solver. The marketing department can package that problem solving as a product and that will provide business value.
MPelletier
2009-11-23 15:15:10
crickey, what selfish comments - you're in a job to solve problems properly. Too many people now seem tot hink that as long as they get to code something fun, all's ok, even if it solves the main problem but introduces a heap more. Seen that too many times recently.
gbjbaanb
2010-08-12 17:48:08
There are quite a few times where I recognized a discrepancy in design vs requirements or in two peoples views of a problem. Also noticing places where people haven't thought out a design. I've also taught a few programmers to actually care about the code and program better--I think I've helped companies more in these ways than through my actual coding.
Bill K
2010-09-02 19:42:56
I've seen more than a few questions that should have been Googled instead of clogging SO with it. How to change a button's text comes to mind.
kirk.burleson
2010-07-24 00:22:01
think that the owners wanted here to be a one stop shop. So trivial questions are ok. Let me clear though - this is not my motto. "RTFM think then SO/google would be better". think probably being THE most important step there
John Nolan
2010-07-24 17:29:46
+79
A:
when writing software, imagine that the person who has to maintain it is a violent psychopath who knows your address.
Keep everything clear, obvious and as self-documenting as possible.
I had a client that fits your description... those were scary days for me.
Steve Obbayi
2008-09-23 04:32:37
There is a difference between someone who is lazy and someone who is a lazy programmer. I'll spend hours coding something so later I can save 20 seconds, plus its fun to do those types of coding projects.
percent20
2010-07-24 01:04:07
I'm a lazy programmer. That's why I strive for good, clean code -- I'm an *enlightened* lazy programmer.
Dan Breslau
2010-07-24 02:29:01
As programmers, are we the laziest hard-working people around, or the hardest-working lazy people?
baultista
2010-08-12 17:51:54
This has happened to me when I was working on a large .NET project in Visual Studio 2003 *on a laptop*. It took 10 - 15 to compile everything. But it's not my motto :-)
Cristian Ciupitu
2008-09-18 09:09:01
I chuckled the first time I saw this comic a few months ago - little did I know how true it would turn out in my new job.....
Erik Forbes
2008-10-04 05:36:55
If I am not mistaken, this picture is also featured in the "Programmer's Comics" and the "Programmer Quotes" questions, and possible a few others as well.
Andreas Rejbrand
2010-07-24 00:50:18
I'm of the philosophy that if my program takes long enough to compile that I have time to slack off, I must be doing *something* wrong, *somewhere*.
Jon Purdy
2010-07-24 01:22:57
+8
A:
"Code as if somebody else needs to understand your code."
and
"Do no evil!"
Gary Willoughby
2008-09-17 10:50:32
Code as if the person taking over is a maniac with a gun, and knows your home address.
icelava
2008-09-17 14:13:53
+111
A:
Programming is like sex. One mistake and you have to support it the rest of your life.
Steve Obbayi
2008-09-17 10:51:34
Oh no that "S" word! Freakishly enough I have seen an edit that removed sex from a post because of fears that it would block the entirety of SO in a corporate filter. ugh
_ande_turner_
2008-10-20 17:00:34
It's not the 's' word that can be considered offensive, it's that (some) children are considered mistakes. Fortunately it's not a crime to abandon unwanted software projects ;-)
Outlaw Programmer
2009-02-13 21:02:25
I prefer to think of her as my little surprise. Don't know what I'd do without her now. :)
kirk.burleson
2010-07-23 23:53:06
It's funny, I guess I interpreted this differently from everyone else. I thought the implication was that if you get a girl pregnant you have to support *her* for the rest of her life. Which would indeed be pretty offensive. But now, realizing my mistake, I think **I** must be the offensive one for having interpreted the joke that way in the first place. Damn, I am one old-fashioned chauvinist!
Dan Tao
2010-08-12 18:10:38
+1
A:
- If software design were as visible as a bridge or house, we would be hiding our heads in shame.
- The code is important. The braces are syntactical sugar.
- Beginning coders comment nothing; Novice coders comment the obvious; Experienced coders comment the reason of code; Master coders comment the reason for the code not used.
- The only thing harder than trying to design software is trying to design software as a team.
- I need this baby in a month - send me nine women.
A:
When you're green you're growing, when you're ripe you rot!
Scott and the Dev Team
2008-09-17 11:20:10
while(--code); (oh, it was enough _less_ to produce a compiler error: "* required - at least 15 characters")
valya
2009-11-23 02:21:40
A:
The requirements are going to change in a month. I might have to make the change.
Write so I can understand it in a month.
Swati
2008-09-17 11:43:30
A:
"Why?"
While I'm mostly a BA these days I think it holds equally well in either role.
Chris B-C
2008-09-17 11:50:53
Seen again yesterday, with the tester sitting next to me in front of his machine, producing crash after crash with my app.
OregonGhost
2008-09-27 19:46:49
I actually threatened to fire an employee (a very good, senior programmer) if he ever again told a customer, "It works on my machine." For a customer there is nothing more infuriating than to be blown off in this manner. I have a friend in construction whose favor comment about possible flaws in his work is, "Well, I can't see it from my house." Arrrgghh!
Peter Rowell
2010-01-02 03:20:21
It was just a reference to Jeff Atwood's blog entry on 'It works on my machine'!http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/archives/000818.html
Russ C
2010-01-04 12:53:04
As long as I get a newer machine each time, I don't mind shipping them together.
Scott
2010-02-03 00:05:23
Q: "How many programmers does it take to change a lightbulb?"A: "None. I have the same lightbulb here in the office and it's working just fine!"
Joshua Carmody
2010-09-03 18:27:51
+2
A:
First learn to solve problems then, if you must, learn to write code.
codeLes
2008-09-17 12:16:01
+1. I live by this, and couldn't hope to phrase it more elegantly.
Tikhon Jelvis
2010-06-17 05:30:55
Yeah, I know it's hard to be proud over code - specially when being quite perfectionist - but at least you avoid the broken window syndrome
rshimoda
2008-11-19 18:03:44
I wish I could give this more than +1. I also wish more co-workers would live by this motto. There is *so* much pain in shoddy workmanship...
DevSolar
2010-07-21 14:38:52
If only it weren't possible to be proud of things that aren't good enough.
Jon Purdy
2010-07-24 01:24:24
I always feel like this, even though coworkers keep telling me otherwise. It is true though, it does need to ship...
Ramon Zarazua
2010-07-25 02:30:07
+2
A:
I've always thought of Soichiro Honda's quote "Success is 99% Failure" to be a good one.
The Zen of Python has a lot of ideas I really like too.
Jon Cage
2008-09-17 12:27:27
A:
From Terry Pratchett, natch:
Cuius testiculos habes, habeas cardeo et cerebellum
Tim Howland
2008-09-17 12:29:50
+4
A:
A test that succeeds when it is intended to fail is far more worrisome than when it is intended to succeed.
Chris
2008-09-17 12:36:54
+129
A:
A good programmer always looks both ways before crossing a one-way street.
Antonio Louro
2008-09-17 12:40:33
That's funny. My wife makes fun of me because I stop at intersections even when I don't have a stop sign.
Ferruccio
2008-09-17 20:27:55
I do the same thing at the intersections! Glad to see I am not the only one:)
Antonio Louro
2008-09-26 12:56:08
particularly true in that the most dangerous car on the road would be one coming the wrong way down a one-way street
ChrisHDog
2008-10-22 02:57:47
A really good programmer also looks up, and listens for anything that might burst out of the ground.
Eclipse
2009-05-31 15:35:37
@Eclipse: And don't forget always checking your blind spot just in case a grue is sneaking up on you.
JAB
2010-07-21 15:10:29
@Ferruccio: Stopping at intersections where you do not have a stop sign can be extremely dangerous. Someone on the cross-street may think it's a four-way stop and proceed through assuming someone else coming opposite you will stop.
Nick T
2010-09-02 17:00:48
Man, I do that in real life! There are always ways for an idiot (or an unsuspected problem) to come from your dead angle. I know... I have been such an idiot once. It's amazing how much damage you can do to a car while your bike sustains none :P
Morlock
2010-03-07 17:39:05
+1
A:
Do your best to get it done on time, but doing it the right way is more important.
crashmstr
2008-09-17 13:16:18
A:
"Be Prepared!" Anything can happen when you program executes, sanity check all user input.
LaptopHeaven
2008-09-17 13:27:05
A:
If it's stupid and it works, it's not stupid.
Programming is art, not mathematics.
David
2008-09-17 13:35:42
+2
A:
"Nothing is impossible in software."
It's helped me think around some stubborn problems and inital thoughts of "it can't be done", "it's impossible", etc.
Daemin
2008-09-17 13:35:44
It may be possible, however is it worth the investment of time and resources? (hint: if you are a consultant, it is **always** worth it)
Redbeard 0x0A
2008-09-17 15:13:57
It works if you use it as a personal motto, to make you stop and think about the different ways that a particular problem could be solved. It means that you have to think rather than just say that it's impossible and not do it.
Daemin
2008-09-26 01:07:13
+48
A:
Never solve hard problems.
Divide hard problems into simple ones, and solve those.
theschmitzer
2008-09-17 13:43:14
A:
"If you didn't learn anything today, you weren't paying attention!"
belugabob
2008-09-17 13:47:08
+1
A:
Slow down, get it in writing, and it's never too late to test one more time.
devinmoore
2008-09-17 13:47:58
A:
To serve and to protect.
also:
If I'm not making mistakes, then I'm not trying hard enough.
JosephStyons
2008-09-17 13:50:30
+2
A:
"Good code reads like documentation". From the Agile Manifesto, I think.
entzik
2008-09-17 14:01:57
No, this is not from the Agile Manifesto. What it recommended there is "working software over comprehensive documentation".
philippe
2008-09-26 07:21:35
+62
A:
Make it run, make it right, make it fast. My dad told me this the first day I started programming. I still have to remind myself sometimes. Make it run, because it's too easy to take counsel of your fears and spin off into AbstractDesignLand. Make it right, because there lies the joy of software. Make it fast so people can use it, but don't make any performance-related decision until you have solid evidence.
Kent Beck
2008-09-17 14:02:16
A:
"No coffee, No workee"
"If you can't understand the code, you probably shouldn't be modifying it."
"It compiles. Ship it."
CodeRot
2008-09-17 14:02:41
That should be revised to "don't push until its reviewed" in DVCS systems.
Justin Dearing
2010-09-01 18:25:58
+1
A:
"Software should meet the user on their terms, not the other way around."
And my favorite for making big, technical decisions... "What could possibly go wrong?"
Brandon Payton
2008-09-17 14:17:24
+3
A:
There has to be a better way to do this...
Most normally followed by... No whammies... no whammies... no whammies... COMPILED!
Rob
2008-09-17 14:19:40
A:
Comment why the code is there. Indent properly and consistently. Follow naming conventions. Don't write the same thing more then once. Have a sandwich.
mrinject
2008-09-17 14:33:55
A:
Don't fit the problem to technology, find the proper technology to solve the problem.
AriT93
2008-09-17 14:36:23
+21
A:
"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." -Arthur C. Clarke
Bloodhound
2008-09-17 14:37:37
Any sufficiently advanced magic is indistinguishable from programming.
Apocalisp
2008-09-18 01:17:31
Any sufficiently reliable magic is indistinguishable from science.
Matthew Scouten
2008-09-18 20:47:16
Technology that can be distinguished from magic is insufficiently advanced.
Sherm Pendley
2008-10-22 02:50:01
A:
Don't keep zombies in your backyard. You never know when they'll come to get you.
When you know something is not right, fix it asap.
Alexandre Hauser
2008-09-17 14:56:22
A:
CASE: Copy And Save Everything
or, in modern business-speak:
Don't reinvent the wheel.
John Biazo
2008-09-17 15:05:20
A:
Adapt to change.
Whether its features, pace of technology, toolsets, etc....how are you at Adapting?
Brad Osterloo
2008-09-17 15:08:59
I suck... I do believe it gets worse with age. I try to do some "mind gymnastic" writing small scripts in languages I don't use daily to try and improve.
Manrico Corazzi
2008-09-17 15:32:04
I agree that it gets harder each year and gets harder to decide where to focus less time on broader topics!
Brad Osterloo
2008-09-20 23:38:53
A:
"What do you mean user acceptance tests? Is my precious work going to be ravaged by a bunch of careless users?!?"
;-)
Manrico Corazzi
2008-09-17 15:19:34
A:
I am a good cook, I am a fantastic eater. -Stephen Brust
I apply this philosophy to all things in life, not just food.
Mike Miller
2008-09-17 15:23:18
A:
My job is to solve problems, usually with computers, usually with code.
Craig Trader
2008-09-17 15:35:34
That's a bit harsh IMHO. Just because people don't understand computers like we do (usually because they have no interest in doing so) is no reason to call them stupid. Part of our job, if not our WHOLE job, is making those people feel empowered.
Wayne Koorts
2009-11-23 18:34:39
Of course, this is because "the user" in this case is the upper bound of stupidity--if you have more than a few users, the worst is going to be really bad invariably. The user may not always be stupid, but you will always either have stupid users or have a small user base.
Tikhon Jelvis
2010-06-17 05:29:59
A:
Depnds on the day :
Good Day = Truism : "Single Stepping your code is the ONLY way"
Bady Day = Sarcasim : "What could possibly go wrong?
Stephen Bailey
2008-09-17 15:42:41
A:
The motto I have on the wall next to me is:
Keep It Simple Stupid
That way I never forget it.
StubbornMule
2008-09-17 15:48:28
+61
A:
“A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.” —Antoine De Saint-Exupery
JK
2008-09-17 15:49:39
There's nothing more fun than refactoring and hacking out large sections of code.
Evan Plaice
2010-06-25 07:58:09
Like when you put in some missing inheritance and suddenly 100's of lines of code disappear - joy.
AndyM
2010-07-21 15:09:43
Although it sometimes makes me nervous when I delete entire files. But in the end it is definitely a good feeling.
Jack
2010-07-29 20:47:54
+1
A:
I have a few...
Don't do anything a machine could be doing.
With a PC, the easy things are easy, but the hard things are impossible. With UNIX, the easy things are hard, but all things are possible. -- I don't remember the source... Schwartz maybe?
Just say NO to a pretty GIU.
Driving a mouse is about like driving a truck. When I drive a keyboard, I'm driving fleets of trucks.
A new computer is a hundred times cheaper than a new employee, and the computer works around the clock.
A:
My motto is: Script it and go to sleep.
In other words, don't waste your time doing routine menial tasks (like renaming individual files in a directory) when you can automate the process and be more efficient.
As a corollary, I do like "keep it simple, stupid". Engineers and Programmers seem to take pride in over-complicating solutions.
typicalrunt
2008-09-17 16:00:07
A:
In the words of Mad-Eye Moody, "Constant Vigilance". You always need to stay on top of your game.
skb
2008-09-17 16:00:35
+1
A:
"Rule Four: You can accomplish more with robots than you can with stress."
Depressingly true :) I end up picking the first almost-pronounceable acronym I can think of!
HoboBen
2008-09-18 21:24:50
A:
"Keep it simple stupid"
"Treat everything in life like a challenge"
Primetime
2008-09-17 16:51:07
+6
A:
"Master one thing. Learn as much as possible about everything else"
Heston T. Holtmann
2008-09-17 17:01:46
I was going to post something like this. I like to phrase it as "Jack of all trades and master of one."
Boojum
2009-09-22 22:04:41
A:
"Have fun"
Although I think this from the favorite quotes question might be a little more fitting.
"It's morning already?"
Sergio Morales
2008-09-17 17:22:29
+3
A:
Keep It Simple Stupid, there's a quote that springs to mind when someone's getting all "clever" about their implementation of a feature, to paraphrase:
Debugging code is twice as hard as writing that code in the first place so if you're writing code approaching your technical limits then you're already too stupid to debug it.
Now I don't completely agree with that (as you can learn while you're debugging and thus improve to the level where you're ok) but it's always struck a chord with me.
Gary Buckley
2008-09-17 17:34:19
I will write code near my technical limits and I will be able to debug it. I'm just willing to spend two days debugging a few hundred bytes of code.
Joshua
2009-11-20 00:10:41
A:
"Bloody instructions which being taught return to plague their inventors" -- Machbet
terminus
2008-09-17 17:38:43
+8
A:
"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius -- and a lot of courage -- to move in the opposite direction." - Albert Einstein
Jana
2008-09-17 17:51:51
+1
A:
"If you were accused of being a developer...would there be enough evidence to convict?"
Ian Patrick Hughes
2008-09-17 19:27:55
+3
A:
Everything should be as simple as possible - but no simpler. -- Albert Einstein
Steven A. Lowe
2008-09-17 19:37:13
+3
A:
assert(ItWorks != ItIsCorrect); # Ever
and
If you tell lies to your computer, years later, long after you've forgotten, it will tell tham back to you. So, never tell lies to your computer.
Brent.Longborough
2008-09-17 19:50:41
+3
A:
"As simple as possible, but no simpler" -- Einstein (?) via Scott Myers
Michael Easter
2008-09-17 20:27:13
+3
A:
Nothing is impossible - it just needs more time to implement.
m_pGladiator
2008-09-17 20:27:25
A:
A programmer is just a programmer. A developer should get one and stick to designing.
Silvercode
2008-09-17 20:43:53
@Nathan Long: Didn't you mean: `def didWeSucceed{ if (false) { return true; } }` ?
pipitas
2010-08-16 09:07:53
@pipitas - Actually, for brevity, I should have said `def didWeSucceed { return true; }`. But my method always returns true, because `if (true)` will always run. Whereas `if(false)` will never do so. In other words, my method always says we succeeded; yours always says we failed.
Nathan Long
2010-08-16 11:17:46
+3
A:
It is by caffeine alone I set my mind in motion. It is by the bean of java that thoughts acquire speed, the hands acquire shaking, the shaking becomes a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my mind in motion.
(from "Dune", via the Scary Devil Monastery)
Matt Hucke
2008-09-17 21:40:17
+1
A:
I love the DRY motto: "Don't Repeat Yourself". It drives me to constantly refactor my code which ends up making things simpler and more readable. The best code patches are ones that remove code.
DGM
2008-09-17 21:59:35
+1
A:
Use the correct language to solve the problem.
Leave the code cleaner than when I found it.
Martin York
2008-09-17 22:26:35
+17
A:
Mine is also a life motto and is actually tattooed on my arm :)
"Aut viam inveniam aut faciam" - I will either find a way or I will make one.
unrealtrip
2008-09-17 23:04:21
I read this and immediately wanted to go out and get this tattooed on my arm, too, but realized that my wife would probably shoot me. By the way, can we have a photograph of the tattoo?
Cyberherbalist
2010-07-30 19:06:18
That is cool :) Anyway, not the greatest photo since cell phone, but here's what it looks like: http://i.imgur.com/9Q6ao.jpg The flourished "A" is modeled after a page in an illuminated copy of Virgil's epic Aeneid in which one of Hector's principle lieutenants Aeneas was charged with leading the remaining survivors out of Troy, eventually to the place which would become the founding of Rome. Aeneas found a way, and that is how I live my life each day.
unrealtrip
2010-08-16 23:22:15
+18
A:
My place of work's motto
"We don't have time to do it right, but we have time to do it over"
Ethan Gunderson
2008-09-18 00:00:14
Or "we don't have time to do it right, or time to do it over, but occasionally, while we're adding new features, we have time to tack on other features that try to work around the original poor design. If you're lucky."
Nathan Long
2009-11-23 18:34:42
+24
A:
"If Brute Force isn't working for you, you aren't using enough of it!"
OldGreyTroll
2008-09-18 00:01:38
If all you ever write are fancy dynamic programming algorithms and polynomial-time 3-SAT solvers, you may find that writing a brute forcer is harder than you expected.
Joey Adams
2010-07-24 02:25:43
+15
A:
From the Tao of Programming:
A program should follow the `Law of Least Astonishment'. What is this law? It is simply that the program should always respond to the user in the way that astonishes him least.
Cyberherbalist
2008-09-18 00:03:36
I don't think so, @relet. The phrase "at least" means that as a minimum something must be the case. The intent of the Law of Least Astronishment is that, ideally, the user should not be astonished at all, but the less astonished the better.
Cyberherbalist
2010-07-30 19:04:53
+1
A:
If I can't explain it to an 8 year old, don't code it yet.
Christopher Mahan
2008-09-18 00:08:43
A:
Not all problems are worth solving. Here's my estimate for that database app.....
And
If it's not in the spec, it's going to cost you extra, and it's going to be done later.
Or, as a friend of mine used to say,
"Okay, we can do that. What DON'T you want done?"
Raintree
2008-09-18 00:16:24
A:
It'll take two more weeks.
Just kidding. I'd guess I'd have to go with:
Be reliable.
Daniel Auger
2008-09-18 00:29:21
A:
Any technology, no matter how primitive, is magic to those who don't understand it.
Silver Dragon
2008-09-18 01:25:03
+6
A:
Walking on water and developing software from a specification are easy if both are frozen. - Edward V Berard
Swaroop C H
2008-09-18 04:29:07
A:
"Plan to throw one away, you will anyhow." - Fred Brooks
"If you plan to throw one away, you will throw away two." - Craig Zerouni
phloopy
2008-09-18 04:40:01
A:
If it doesn't work in the lab, it won't work in the field. If it doesn't work in the field, it doesn't work.
Jonathan Guthrie
2008-09-18 05:47:01
A:
The path to becoming a good programmer is paved with bad scripts.
Mihai Lazar
2008-09-18 06:04:52
+1
A:
When i program for myself, it is:
"You are not a team of 50 people, so stop planning big advanced applications"
Jesper Blad Jensen aka. Deldy
2008-09-18 07:05:26
A:
Rahul
2008-09-18 08:55:41
A:
I like the philosophy of NetBSD:
Some systems seem to have the philosophy of "If it works, it's right". In that light NetBSD could be described as "It doesn't work unless it's right".
Cristian Ciupitu
2008-09-18 09:01:05
A:
I just keep tryin' ta get a little better Said the little better than before
from Mr. Brownstone by Guns N' Roses
Jan Hancic
2008-09-18 09:14:09
A:
A good program is nothing but a theory of the world.
And there is no sense in letting a few ugly facts spoil a beautiful theory.
Kramii
2008-09-18 09:23:19
A:
It's only impossible because nobody has done it yet. (Glynn Willet, ATX Inc)
edburdo
2008-09-18 11:14:31
A:
There's always a solution.
Nothing's impossible, every challenge is achievable one way or another; it's just a case of persevering and being creative until you find the right way.
Luke Bennett
2008-09-18 13:09:43
A:
"Those who can code - Compile, Those who can't code - Error Check, Those who can't error check are inevitably your bosses"
RAGNO
2008-09-18 13:52:31
A:
But there’s no sense crying over every mistake.
You just keep on trying till you run out of cake.
Chii
2008-09-18 14:03:14
A:
A seated genious will always go less far away than a walking dumbass.
e-satis
2008-09-18 14:05:47
+5
A:
The IBM Polyanna Principle:
Machines should work; People should think.
Yuval
2008-09-18 14:42:22
+1
A:
"Experience is what You get, When you don't get what you want."
Abhishek Mishra
2008-09-18 14:52:45
A:
Commit early, commit often.
Also applies to designing, commenting, and testing.
Rob Oxspring
2008-09-18 14:58:40
Often works as "pick one" and try to keep a second from going out of control.
Cylon Cat
2009-11-22 14:06:35
A:
Google knows everything. StackOverflow knows less, but it's better organized.
Matthew Scouten
2008-09-18 21:04:05
A:
In response to all the "simple" responses:
"For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong." - H.L. Mencken
:)
Frank Pape
2008-09-18 21:11:55
A:
Relentless Incrementalism, and maximum stability!
I never stop my relentless pursuit of incremental improvement and the pursuit of perfect algorithms and code. There is always room for improvement, for a new way of looking at things, and a better way to attack a problem. I do this all with a near paranoid focus on making sure the resulting code is unbreakable too (I actually believe in the concept of bug-free software).
Sure, I have some basic objects, methods, and techniques that have "risen to the top" now and remain proven, efficient, stable, and accurate. But, I try to never let myself consider anything to be immutable, and I let me mind constantly ponder potential improvements (speed, stability, etc), and test my ideas regularly. This leads to all sorts of great programs that are not only robust, but fast and bug-free.
A:
Crusty
2008-09-19 02:37:56
+2
A:
- Fork
- Morph
(if !what_you_had_in_mind) GOTO 2- It rings!
When in doubt - morph it more!
Morph it 'till it rings!
Oddmund
2008-09-19 02:53:45
A:
Well, I wanted to use something funnier and wittier, but here are two of the ones I find myself using fairly frequently:
The software architecture and platform isn't "done" until it can do everything it is conceivable and possible for it to perform within its domain through reconfiguration (obviously by these standards, I've never ACTUALLY completed a software platform or architecture :))
Don't be afraid to do it yourself
Chris Ingrassia
2008-09-19 12:37:38
A:
NOTHING is impossible. Its not rocket-science, nor is it brain-surgery. And, even if it was, there are developers for that stuff to - so the request isnt impossible.
Optimal Solutions
2008-09-20 03:43:40
+3
A:
A regex is the light at the end of a long, dimly lit tunnel. The light of an oncoming train, that is.
nilamo
2008-09-20 03:52:28
A:
"Do the simplist thing that could possibly work." Too much time is lost coding overly complicated solutions to problems. Start with the simple, and then grow from there as needed.
John Fiala
2008-09-20 16:37:56
A:
"Experience is being able to say 'I think I've messed up like this before'"
Andrew Edgecombe
2008-09-21 02:13:43
+9
A:
Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.
Abraham Lincoln
Mariano
2008-09-21 22:37:37
I wonder what Rocket Scientists say when they want to express "That stuff is not Rocket Science!"...
Michael Stum
2008-09-21 23:26:37
I remember a cartoon of two people playing billiards, and the caption read, "Well... actually it is rocket science..."
Evan
2008-09-22 03:24:14
+2
A:
It's often better to solve the general class of problems of which the problem before you is merely a specific case.
Robert Rossney
2008-09-21 23:28:54
+1
A:
"I can make it do anything you want, provided you give me enough time and money."
As a consultant, that's my standard answer to clients asking "can you write a program that does this?"
Dave Sherohman
2008-09-22 00:05:06
+4
A:
I actually have those two sentences as background on my dev machine:
"Does that make sense to people?" and "If it ain't broke, you're not trying hard enough"
crash
2008-09-22 00:25:42
+2
A:
The first step to becoming a good programmer is to admit that you're not.
Chris Carruthers
2008-09-23 00:58:31
A:
Write code as if you will never touch it again.
That means, do it right the first time. Do not bank on being able to go back later and fix it up.
EmmEff
2008-09-23 01:24:00
A:
As a passionate pragmatist:
Figure out the least number of steps you think are needed, then get out Occams Razor and start shaving
Dr J
2008-09-23 12:44:14
A:
"Designing computer software today is a race between software engineers trying to build better, idiot-proof programs, and the Universe trying to build better idiots. So far the Universe is winning."
Can't remember the author's name; feel free to me edit me if you do. (Originally saw it as a user signature on a technical forum. It's from a rather well known technical author, a Mr Grant, maybe, if I remember right.)
Pinpin
2008-09-23 13:31:48
+1
A:
I wanna change the world, but they won't give me the source code.
Mihai Lazar
2008-09-23 15:16:16
+1
A:
"Expect the unexpected" and "Trust no one" (from users, library functions, etc.)
Uri
2008-09-27 22:21:59
A:
I have several
1 - Reinventing the wheel is boring - and who wants an oval wheel that falls off every few minutes? Someone else has done this before.
2 - Make something work now, make it work better, later.
3 - Let's just do some Googling...
Piku
2008-10-06 11:35:23
A:
For me it's more like "Never give up" - I guess that's what happens when you're exposed daily to Coding Horrors and somehow you have to turn that into a nice application.
rshimoda
2008-10-06 11:57:26
+3
A:
"Listen to your fear."
One of the hardest lessons I've had to learn is that if there's something I'm avoiding looking at, or something I'm half-afraid to look at, then that's almost certainly the part that is misdesigned, miscoded, or most likely to require changes later on.
In this case fear isn't the mind-killer. It's more like the smoke alarm.
Tim Lesher
2008-10-20 17:01:52
A:
The end user doesn't know what they want and the managers are even worse. Just implement and iterate.
PeteT
2008-10-22 03:35:31
A:
Meetings with people who aren't developers are seldom useful, but it does get me out the office
PeteT
2008-10-22 03:39:01
+1
A:
Before I push open the office main door, I tell myself:
I am not here for money. I am here to learn something new ..
It has kept my little candle burning inside me..
jpush
2008-11-07 22:29:01
A:
Cheap and cheerful. Credit to Dan for introducing me to the phrase.
Bob Cross
2008-11-21 19:02:54
A:
Red / Green / Refactor
It is to the point where I have nightmares about Christmas trees pruning themselves. It is for more than just TDD, now!
joseph.ferris
2008-12-03 21:12:05
Similar to "Don't rewrite software": http://www.joelonsoftware.com/articles/fog0000000069.html . Granted, refactoring's fine and good, especially when you have testcases.
Joey Adams
2010-07-24 02:34:57
A:
I don't really understand anything that I haven't built myself. I may think I do, but I don't. At best, I have a superficial familiarity with it, but I don't really understand it like I would if I had built it myself. (That's not to say that I should build everything myself; just that I shouldn't be deceived into thinking that I have mastered anything that I haven't built myself.)
By the same token, I am forced to admit, on a daily basis, that I am nowhere anywhere near as smart as I may think I am or wish that I was. Reflecting upon my own handiwork is a gentle reminder that I am capable of acts of overwhelming stupidity, astonishing hubris, and a mind-boggling propensity to repeat the mistakes of the past.
Mike Hofer
2009-02-13 20:53:24
+6
A:
This is more of an Anti-Motto, but its a quote that always reminds me that making the code concise is what I should be striving for.
I have made this letter longer than usual, only because I have not had
the time to make it shorter.
-Blaise Pascal
Rob Haupt
2009-03-31 19:16:17
+9
A:
If you don't have time to do it right, how come you have time to do it twice?
Brad
2009-05-29 10:22:55
+2
A:
"It's not about the tools" and "a buggy product today is better than an Apple product tomorrow".
ldigas
2009-05-29 10:33:18
A:
As long as I ease the job for the user, I don't care how much I have to do.
cyberzed
2009-05-29 10:34:31
So are you saying that your motto is "I don't care if it doesn't work for you, because it works for me."?
Wayne Koorts
2009-11-23 20:39:47
+8
A:
"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work."
Thomas A. Edison (1847 - 1931), (attributed)
DaveParsons
2009-05-29 12:12:18
+1
A:
"Serving simple solutions to perplexing problems, perpetually."
That's my motto at the moment, it may get refactored sometime...
JB King
2009-09-22 21:54:00
+2
A:
"Some hours of trial and error can save you minutes of reading manuals" :-D
Konamiman
2009-10-08 07:31:17
+2
A:
This one's more methodological than a general motto, but here goes:
- The first copypaste is OK, as long as you know what you're doing.
- The second means a refactor is due.
- The third means you're doing it wrong.
Tullo
2009-10-08 07:46:35
+5
A:
Programming today is a race between software engineers striving to build bigger and better idiot-proof programs, and the Universe trying to produce bigger and better idiots. So far, the Universe is winning.
[From The Wizardry Cursed by Rick Cook]
Dror Helper
2009-10-08 08:20:24
A:
- There's no such term in programming as "impossible".
- Everything is possible!
It just takes too long or too costly to produce.
Viktor Jevdokimov
2009-10-08 08:53:53
A:
why deallocate when you have have it live forever!!! (just kidding)
my real one:
Simple is better!
Matt S.
2009-10-14 20:29:29
A:
Mine would be: Just do it, whatever it is!
P.S. This is actually a line from my personal guidance book for programmers. I haven't made the book public.
Secko
2009-11-19 23:36:34
Aren't fast and on time kinda that same thing? I believe it's supposed to be "Good, Fast, Cheap; pick two"
Neil N
2009-11-23 18:38:55
+1
A:
"If your code isn't elegant you haven't reached the right abstraction level yet."
rsp
2009-11-22 12:59:14
+1
A:
Mine is not as funny...
Do it once, done it for all.
I'm a believer in reusability and think software developers are innovator and not programming monkeys.
rockacola
2009-11-22 13:54:38
A:
(said when I forget to upload updates)
"It must be cached in your browser"
ScottE
2009-11-22 14:16:37
+4
A:
"It depends."
That's the answer to all good software engineering questions, really.
To be a good software engineer, you should know on what it depends, and why.
hexium
2009-11-23 02:05:15
A:
If you are going to be a wall blocking my way, I'll drill a hole in you and blow you apart anytime! I am a paragon of masculinity. Go beyond the impossible and kick reason to the curb! Who the hell do you think I am!?
Stuart Branham
2009-11-23 02:19:38
+1
A:
"Brevity is the soul of wit, not of reliable implementations."
I don't know how many times I've heard the "it's only 3 lines of code" argument to present a solution. And every time, 3 lines were not enough, or took days to write. Now, when someone tells me about their fabled "3 line function", and that it's actually running in a piece of software I have to maintain, I recoil in fear automatically, it's become a damn reflex.
AND, in reply to another response:
"My job IS to program, that is, to be on the receiving end of a problem, and solve it, programmatically or sometimes otherwise. To be a programmer is to be a problem solver. The marketing department can package that problem solving as a product and that will provide business value."
MPelletier
2009-11-23 02:22:44
+2
A:
Any fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius-and a lot of courage-to move in the opposite direction.
- John Dryden
aredkid
2009-11-23 18:27:19
+1
A:
Release the code - Heghlu'meH QaQ jajvam
Klingon speak for - Today is a good day to die
Best regards, Tom.
tommieb75
2010-01-02 03:00:19
+2
A:
Who needs unit tests when you've got BDD (breakpoint driven development)
Mika Kolari
2010-04-09 18:25:17
+2
A:
For this I stand with the viewpoint of Einstein :
"Everything should be made
as Simple as possible,
but not simpler."
And attitude level - "Right Guy for the Right Job"
venJava
2010-06-30 11:17:04
A:
Write it like I'm going to have to physically perform everything it does every time it does it down the road.
joebert
2010-07-21 14:21:10
+1
A:
This is more of a troubleshooting motto than a programming motto, but I like it.
"Quit thinking and look!" -David Agans in "Debugging"
Further clarification from the same book...
"You can think up thousands of causes of the failure, but you can see only the actual cause."
JohnFx
2010-07-21 14:32:33
A:
You shouldn't ask "whether" something needs or should be done. You should ask "What are you willing to give up to get it?"
Thomas
2010-07-21 14:59:01
A:
Meta: Everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler. -Einstein
Implementation: Remove pieces (features, design elements, etc) until it breaks.
Kurtosis
2010-07-24 00:46:38
A:
Anything is possible.
As programmers, we have the power to do magic within the universe of the computer. There are some rules, yes, but just about anything can be done. If someone tells you that what you want to do is impossible, then they're either wrong or lying.
I think that this applies especially in the field of language design.
Jon Purdy
2010-07-24 01:36:47
+3
A:
When your product is 80% complete, that means you have another 80% to go.
this. __curious_geek
2010-07-30 09:09:01
+1
A:
If you are doing too much, stop and think. If you are thinking too much, stop and do.
Helps strike a balance between over/under planning
Neil N
2010-08-06 14:24:26
A:
Not so much a motto as a way of thinking.
What Is A Computer?
A Computer Is A Big Box With A Little Man In It.
This Little Man Is "Myopic". He's So Myopic That He Can See Only One Instruction At A Time.
But This Man Is Fast. Blazing Fast And Getting Faster.
Also This Man Isn't Very Smart. He'll Attempt To Do Whatever You Tell Him To Do And Always In The Order That You Tell Him To Do It.
Dave
2010-08-06 18:09:08
+2
A:
Nothing is too complex to solve with enough layers of abstraction and nothing is too simple to make too complex with enough layers of abstraction.
Freddy
2010-08-12 18:02:06
+1
A:
"we are all going to hell and I'm driving the bus".
Translation/explanation/how do I understand it: "enjoy your life/job to the fullest, learn from mistakes, fear nothing, and try have fun no matter what happens."
SigTerm
2010-08-12 18:13:10
+1
A:
"You have to belive you're creating the best app, the best business, the best experience in the history of our industry.
Nothing Less".
Alex Hunter
Enrico Carlesso
2010-08-14 09:10:12
A:
"We should forget about small efficiencies, say about 97% of the time: premature optimization is the root of all evil"
lmsasu
2010-08-14 09:12:40
+1
A:
"You can save hours of planning by investing into weeks of coding first."
pipitas
2010-08-16 09:08:55
A:
If the only tool you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.
Michael S. Scherotter
2010-09-12 04:34:42