5 Easy Ways To Become A Better Programmer in 2017
1. Read more code
Human beings are terrible at reading code. There is way too much of it, it’s generally not very well commented, and there is a lot of “technical debt” to wade through. As a result, we tend to just skip over the bits we don’t understand. But those are the bits that you need to look at! The stuff you don’t understand is where you will learn the most, and being able to read code is how you will be able to contribute to your company.
If you do nothing else this year, read more code. It’s almost certainly going to be worth your time.**
Let’s start with a few easy ways to get better at programming.
Becoming a better programmer isn’t always easy, but it’s always worth it. Once you get into the habit of learning and improving, you’ll find yourself becoming more skilled and confident in your ability to program.
We’ve put together five easy ways to become a better programmer in 2017. In this post, we’ll go over some simple habits that you can develop over time to become even better than you are now.
1. Read Code Every Day
2. Write Code Every Day
3. Do More Projects
4. Take Breaks
5. Talk With Other Programmers
There are a lot of ways to become a better programmer in 2017. This is only one way. But if you do it, I believe that you will become a better programmer in 2017.
1.) Read code.
Yes, this is the same number one that has appeared on every single “how to become a better programmer” list ever made. And yes, I’m also going to tell you to read more books, and to solve Project Euler problems and to contribute to open source software.
But there’s an important difference between these other suggestions and reading code. The first difference is that most people don’t do it enough even though it’s very easy: just read through some of the code for your current project. Or the code for a competing product (if your company doesn’t mind!). Or the code for something you use every day: your browser, your text editor, etc. If it’s open source, all the better!
The second difference is that reading code often isn’t as much fun as other things programmers could be doing with their time (like writing their own code). But if you want to become a better programmer in 2017, it’s worth putting up with this lack of fun for a little while so you can get good at something everyone
2017 is coming fast, and with it, the perfect opportunity to commit to becoming a better programmer. Here are some tips to really help you grow as a programmer in 2017.
Coding side projects are a great way to become a better programmer. The best side projects will push you out of your comfort zone, but still be accessible enough that you can achieve something before getting bored or frustrated and giving up.
You should set aside some time each week for coding side projects. You could join a programming group like Codebar, where you can learn new skills and meet other programmers. Or you could start your own coding group with friends or colleagues. Again, if you’re struggling to push yourself out of your comfort zone, this will keep you accountable, encourage you to try something new, and give you someone to ask for help when you get stuck.
If you don’t have time for side projects but still want to level up your programming skills in 2017, then we recommend trying Katas at least once a week.
A Kata is an exercise in programming which helps hone your skills through practice and repetition. It’s an attempt to solve the same problem using different techniques and approaches. The idea is that by completing the same exercise multiple times you will improve your ability to
When you write code, what do you focus on? Most developers I know focus on one thing: getting the darn code to work. And that’s a good thing. You should care about getting the code to work. But if that’s all you care about, then you’re missing out on a lot of opportunities to become a better programmer.
You see, there are two types of programmers: those who only focus on whether or not their code works and those who focus on both whether or not their code works and how well it works.
Most developers are the first type of developer. They just want their code to work; they don’t really care about anything else. And there’s nothing wrong with that… as long as you’re okay with not being as good of a programmer as you could be.
But if you want to get better, if you want to level up your skills and become a better programmer, then there are things besides whether or not your code works that you need to pay attention to.
So in this article I’m going to share with you 5 easy ways you can start becoming a better programmer today.
We don’t improve our skills by reading articles, but by writing code. But we can learn from others mistakes or the discoveries they made. Here are five things I learned this year.
1 Use the type system to document your assumptions
In a statically typed language, use all the type information you can to express your assumptions about the program. This allows other developers to write more correct code and avoid bugs. And if you have a bug, you will get faster feedback in form of a compile error instead of an exception at runtime. If you use the compiler to its full potential, it will help you be more productive and write better code.
2 Reduce complexity with functions
If your function does many things, split it into multiple functions. If it accepts many arguments, create a class for them. The less complex the behavior of a function is, the easier it is to understand and reuse it later in your program. It also makes refactoring easier if you want to change something later on. Keep your functions short and simple!
3 Use meaningful names
Meaningful names are important because they make programs easier to read and understand. When choosing a name for a variable or function, ask yourself these questions: What does this variable represent? What