Joy of Coding Conference 2019 slides - Alan Richardson
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The document discusses the evolution of programming and software development, emphasizing the importance of not just surviving but thriving in the field. It highlights challenges faced by learners, the value of reading and understanding code, and the intricacies of creating robust frameworks. Ultimately, the message advocates for aspiring to be solution developers rather than merely coding for survival.
Joy of Coding Conference 2019 slides - Alan Richardson
- 1. Adventures in Programming, Automating, Teaching and Marketing Alan Richardson — EvilTester.com — @EvilTester — compendiumdev.co.uk — digitalonlinetactics.com @EvilTester 1
- 2. You Have Evolved "I Can Code!" We have evolved to a point where we can survive in a world of Software Note: does not need to be programming - any software development role has enhanced survival abilities. @EvilTester 2
- 3. Survive "We can survive" — Normal people. — Non-programmers. May not be able to survive. @EvilTester 3
- 4. Requisite Variety Cybernetics: — "Variety can destroy variety" - Ross Ashby — "Variety can absorb variety" - Stafford Beer @EvilTester 4
- 5. Thrive "We don't want to just Survive, we want to Thrive" if( PROGRAMMER & TESTER & ARCHITECT & DESIGNER & AUTOMATOR & MARKETEER & TEACHER & OPS){ return SOFTWARE_DEVELOPER; } — You May Not Want to Admit It @EvilTester 5
- 6. Aspire to be a Software Developer @EvilTester 6
- 7. Getting started is the hardest part. @EvilTester 7
- 10. We used to be exposed to a lot more code — Mainstream Magazines — Multiple Languages — Multiple Platforms — Aimed at kids @EvilTester 10
- 11. Bug Detection was for Winners @EvilTester 11
- 12. @EvilTester 12
- 14. @EvilTester 14
- 16. @EvilTester 16
- 17. It wasn't all good though @EvilTester 17
- 18. @EvilTester 18
- 19. Learn from Super Stars @EvilTester 19
- 20. @EvilTester 20
- 21. Now it is all in our browser @EvilTester 21
- 22. @EvilTester 22
- 23. So Much Code Available — Read Code on Github — look for codepen (etc.) runnable examples — YouTube live coding videos — etc. People wanted the 'one true book'. Immersion is what it really took. @EvilTester 23
- 24. Writing frameworks is too much fun and should be banned @EvilTester 24
- 25. "Dear Alan, I have just started learning Selenium WebDriver and Java and I am going to write a framework to make it easy for anyone to use WebDriver and Java..." @EvilTester 25
- 26. "...where do I start?" "Thanks, Someone Who Wants To Save The World" @EvilTester 26
- 27. There is nothing wrong with wanting to save the world @EvilTester 27
- 28. But don't make that the first thing you try to do @EvilTester 28
- 29. What they meant was — I'm finding it hard to learn this stuff — I keep making mistakes — Automating is hard — It seems easier to write the support code — I Want a Job For Life @EvilTester 29
- 30. What they needed — Create solutions to problems — Learn and gain experience — Refactor to generalised abstractions — Build libraries rather than frameworks — Refactor back to inline code @EvilTester 30
- 31. Frameworks are Incredibly hard to build well and require a lot of experience @EvilTester 31
- 32. Dangers of knowing how to code @EvilTester 32
- 33. Every problem looks like a reason to create a Tech Startup... @EvilTester 33
- 34. ... or a framework, or a system, or an application, or code Every Problem! @EvilTester 34
- 35. Problems with Twitter Feed not displayed in time order Cannot filter tweets - too much noise What choice did I have? @EvilTester 35
- 37. Solved Problem with Tools Known at the time — I did review other tools - Twitter clients, but... — I found the easiest reliable Twitter API wrapper I could find — I had an MVP working in hours — I now have a 'thing' @EvilTester 37
- 38. "Normal" might not get as far as tools. "Normal" stops at tools. DANGER - Coder Goes Further @EvilTester 38
- 39. The Ultimate Secrets of Coding (*)... which I give away while training beginners — (*) (some of the secrets) @EvilTester 39
- 40. But each secret is a surface structure Deeper model comes with experience @EvilTester 40
- 41. Applications are just "code calling other libraries" The Secret is to find the right libraries @EvilTester 41
- 42. But the art is in... — choosing a library for: easy of use? efficiency? authority? — abstracting it away or not? — trusting it, or testing it? @EvilTester 42
- 43. Programmers Don't Actually Remember Anything Google -> StackOverflow @EvilTester 43
- 44. But the Art is in ... — wrapping the copied code in a test — refactoring it into our domain — taking responsibility for it @EvilTester 44
- 45. IDEs write and fix code Press Alt+Enter repeatedly, don't remember syntax. Control+Space and Code completion, don't try and remember library functionality. @EvilTester 45
- 46. But the art is in... — the design, not the syntax — writing what we want to see @EvilTester 46
- 47. Programmers Don't Actually Run the App to see if it works Unit Tests Continuous Integration @EvilTester 47
- 48. But the art is in... — creating a trust building assertion safety net — creating a robust execution mechanism @EvilTester 48
- 49. Everything you need to know you can learn from writing Text Adventures @EvilTester 49
- 51. You Learn — Parsing, Tokenisation — Domain Specific Languages — Writing Interpreters — Data Generation — Data Structures — Data Compression — Engines — Incremental releases, System, MVP @EvilTester 51
- 52. No Limit — Web Apps — REST API — Multi-User @EvilTester 52
- 53. Coding Not Always Required — finished games — using an engine — data driven — learn design — DSL creation @EvilTester 53
- 54. Playing Them — Architecture Mapping — Testing — Exploring — Reverse Engineering @EvilTester 54
- 55. Marketing — Solve Problems — Solution Development @EvilTester 55
- 56. Solution Development — Code for individual joy and fun — Survival not the end goal — Thrive as a Software Developer — Build Solutions rather than Software — Help other people Thrive @EvilTester 56
- 57. Aspire to be a Solution Developer @EvilTester 57
- 58. End Alan Richardson EvilTester.com https://twitter.com/eviltester @EvilTester 58
- 59. Games shown — https://www.compendiumdev.co.uk/games/ buggygames/ — https://www.compendiumdev.co.uk/page/ restmud @EvilTester 59
- 60. References — various screenshots of magazines from archive.org — MUD MUD: Messrs Bartle and Trubshaw's Astonishing Contrivance — https://www.youtube.com/watch? v=YfX8Z8W9JCE @EvilTester 60
- 61. About Alan Richardson — EvilTester.com — CompendiumDev.co.uk — Talotics.com — @EvilTester @EvilTester 61