From a novice or experienced programmer, following these helpful professional tips will save you time and greatly improve the quality of your code.
If stuck, take a break
Every programmer/developer has that moment that they got stuck and did not know where to go. Searching in google or browsing over StackOverflow questions, one might find what they need, but the most important thing we forget is we are humans, not machines. From time to time, it’s okay to get frustrated with coding, start yelling, or blame your troubles on your computer. Perhaps a tiny break of 10-15 minutes sounds not so bad. Taking a small tour of your office, small talk with colleagues, or taking a small nap can give you a fresh start.
Code for human, not for just machine
You have to work in a team or a one-man army on the office premises. Your sole responsibility is to solve a problem and give a solution. But remember, those solutions are for the people, not the machine. The code you are writing, you might be remember everything for almost six months to 1 year. Then what after that? Again you are a team player, you write code, but your team is not sure what you are trying to achieve. It’s essential to make your identifiers (i.e., variable and function names) consistent throughout your code, also grammatical structure and explanatory style when naming your functions will provide uniformity and help anyone reading the code.
Solving a problem, the approach is important
Data Structure & Algorithm has an initial vision to solve a problem efficiently. Having the right approach and having a clear understanding of DS & Algo can cut the chase. Sometimes, we try to solve and cut corners and code with a DS or Algo we already know, even if a different approach is better suited for the task. Finding and using the correct technique or tool for the project might increase the work but putting in the extra time will be worth it in the long run. Remember, it’s better to take the spare time and do a job right the first time than to take shortcuts and have to go back and fix the loopholes you missed initially.
Keep methods maintainable
Try avoiding more extended methods. Short methods are easier to read & understand for a developer who looks at the code. Methods with five lines of code indicate that you are breaking up the code too much, making it harder to understand. Avoid too many parameters in the method signature. The ideal number of parameters is 7
It’s okay not to know everything
It’s okay not to know everything. We are failing; we all are still learning, and we learn a lot on a trial and error basis. There is always a better way to do a thing or solve a problem. But we should not focus every time on the betterment. Starting something new or challenging yourself should be the primary focus. Taking advice from the senior, practicing a lot, or surfing over some tutorials can eventually overcome this problem. Practice is the main key point.
