Transcript
What is a clean coder? Can clean coders make a company more successful?
The Clean Coder is Robert Martin’s take on a code of conduct for professional programmers.
It has an image of the Crab Nebula on the cover because that’s cool. We would not have this image without programming.
G’day! Welcome my friend to WTK, the “What to know” show.
I’m your host Peter, Whelan
If you make your living programming, “The Clean Coder” is for you. PANDO
If you hire or manage programmers, read pages 31 to 56.
25 pages that could save you hundreds of thousands of dollars in salaries, frustration and wasted time.
I’ve hired dozens of programmers and I’ve got some strong opinions.
If you’re starting your programming career, “The Clean Coder” will get your journey off on the right foot.
It gives you a good idea of what it takes to commit to being a professional programmer.
I want to say that this is the first book you should read. Yeah, I’ll say it.
I recommend “The clean coder” as the first book you read in your professional programming career. If you haven’t read it yet, read it now. If you want to.
If you can’t imagine why you would want to, watch the story of Priyanka and Greg in my intro to professional programmers playlist.
What I love about our profession is that it has enabled a better life for millions of people. Hundreds of people have become self made billionaires. Many of them, like Bill Gates are now on a mission to dramatically improve the lives of the poorest. That’s fantastic. Gates’s is also an avid reader just like us.
There are problems inherent with any author giving advice. One size doesn’t fit all. You already know this.
Bob goes too far on some points and not far enough on others. This book is what I call “directionally pleasing”.
I like where he’s headed, everything in here points you in a good direction. It’s all excellent advice.
Robert starts with a trip down memory lane.
This brought me back to my time using coding sheets and punch cards.
We wrote our programs for a computer, far away that we had never seen.
It took a week to get the results of running our program. Why so long? This was before networks and email. We desk checked everything before sending our card deck off by courier.
That means we tested programs in our minds before they were run on a computer.
Imagine that. Testing a program before running it.
The ability to get right to work is a significant difference between our profession and others.
Lawyers, doctors and engineers must graduate from a post secondary program.
Robert went to work programming straight out of high school. He was fired from one job, quit another, and celebrated at other jobs.
So, he has that in common with a lot of programmers.
In “The clean coder”, he shares the lessons he’s learned, which advances our craft and your career.
What makes you a professional?
A professional takes a disciplined approach to self education.
A professional knows that “quick and dirty” is an oxymoron. When you look at the big picture, the dirty solutions are slow.
Read “The Clean Coder”. Test the ideas for yourself.
Not because Robert Martin says you should.
Not because I say it’s a good idea.
Test it and decide for yourself.
Discuss the clean coder online or with a coworker.
The more you share, the better you’ll understand it.