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Programming Warm Ups?

Posted by Cliff on from the pre-coding-preparations dept.

ResHippie asks: "No athlete or musician would think about just diving in to the day's activity without doing some series of warm ups first. Aside from starting most computing sessions with checking email and the like, I pretty much try to dive right in to the task at hand. It usually takes me a while to get going, though. Does anyone have any routines they go through before coding (or any other work-like activity) that helps?"

3 of 84 comments (clear)

  1. Python by Apreche · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I usually open up the interactive python session and try a couple things out. It's not really a warm up, I'm trying to learn python. I guess it could be though. Try a few lines of code out, then get down to business.

    --
    The GeekNights podcast is going strong. Listen!
  2. Logic game by Lord+Grey · · Score: 3, Interesting
    My own programming "warm up" isn't much like most of the posts here (reading email, Slashdot, etc.). I do those things every morning, sure, but I don't consider them some kind of warm up for a coding session.

    Instead, I load up the project, create remote sessions, etc. -- whatever I need to do the job -- take a look at the specific thing I need to work on, then background the whole thing and bring up some kind of logic game. Lately, it's been Bejeweled Deluxe.

    I've discovered that a logic game puts me into the right frame of mind while simultaneously letting me "mull over" the work I'm about to do. I stay away from reflex-oriented games, or those involving words; they make me concentrate too closely on the game. By the time I've played a game or two I've already thought of several ways to attack the coding problem at hand, and I can get started.

    --
    // Beyond Here Lie Dragons
  3. Think. Read. Eat. by zedeler · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Before programming, thinking has a proven effect on the outcome of your endavour. I have programmed computers for about half my life (started at 15 and turned 31 last year), and thinking seems paramount when considering what to do before actually coding. It is amazing to see how many forget this basic rule of thumb.

    Next, read books and standards . Not knowing that your problem has been (partly) solved already or can be solved better is a sure path to theeth-grinding reinventions of the wheel.

    Then, when you're really set to start coding (after thinking for half a day, reading a book and three standards), eat. Real food.