Category: Philosophy

Configuration is the Real Magic

A white haired white bearded man holding a wand in the background of fighting brown bears being conjured out of a field of multicolored leaves

I talk about writing software being like magic. It’s how I view the craft in a lot of ways–using arcane words and phrases combined with strange tools to conjure amazing things out of a series of 1’s and 0’s on a circuit board. But when I describe my ultimate career goal as “being a wizard” I mean something, or someone, very specific.

I’m not talking David Copperfield or Penn and Teller. They are very skilled magicians, not wizards. That sort of magic is based on memorizing an illusion, of doing a thing in a certain way because of the reaction you know you’ll elicit. One does a very specific thing, or specific set of things, in a well organized way, over and over and while it gets more polished with practice, it will always be the same.

The words “programming is magic” conjure up Gandalf for me, from the Lord of the Rings universe. For the majority of those adventures, it wasn’t actually magic that made Gandalf the go-to guy–it was never “Gandalf has a spell for that.” What made Gandalf the truly formidable foe and an invaluable ally was the fact he knew things. He understood the old lore, the behavior of people and animals, how the elements of the world fit together and how they could either help or hinder a particular goal.

Gandalf knew the configuration of Middle Earth. Maybe not the *exact* configuration for every situation, but he knew what was missing, or what was the blocker. His magic was always a tool to divine knowledge or to force something into place, to adjust the configuration of a situation. Never magic for the sake of magic, happening in isolation.

“Gandalf knew the configuration of Middle Earth.”

Just like the veteran programmer on the team who always seems able to spot the problem

Continue reading “Configuration is the Real Magic” →

0

M*A*S*H and Single Responsibility

David Ogden Stiers in his army uniform and lab coat against a camoflauge background from MASH

If you haven’t heard of the TV show M*A*S*H, it’s based on an equally excellent movie by the same name. It has exactly nothing to do with coding, software development, business, or anything else you might think is germane to this blog. Except that I watch a lot of it (may have even gotten a Hulu subscription JUST to take advantage of their recent acquisition of the show). Like most art you consume a boatload of it will eventually worm its way into the rest of your life.

Most recently, I had to use a Charles Winchester quote to remind myself of the Single Responsibility Principle.

“I do one thing at a time. I do it very well. And then I move on.”

— Major Charles Emerson Winchester, III

You see where this is going, right?

Continue reading “M*A*S*H and Single Responsibility” →

1

It’s Not the Code

I saw an article recently from Code Like a Girl with a headline “Don’t Teach Your Kids to Be Coders.” It’s an excellent piece, and like most people smarter than me Dr. Johnson managed to put words to a feeling that had bothered me in all my classes at CSCC–the code is a tool, not a result.

I pick up skills very well. I’ve been praised (as an adult even) as a quick study. If I can identify a benefit to knowing how to do a thing, especially an immediate benefit, I will learn to do the thing. Most importantly, do it well enough to count. The jobs I’ve excelled at have had simply-defined goals–that type of goals allows me to determine the tasks necessary, and then start practicing the skills.

Continue reading “It’s Not the Code” →

0

Stripped Bolts

A screwhead with the driver socket worn down by a too-small screwdriver

A few months ago at work, a charge was put out: “Let your coworkers know what you’re working on! Share your successes, make it clear to anyone on the team how your work is going.”

Well, our tiny development team already knew all that. It was the other 8, client-facing people who didn’t have a clue about whether I was having a good week or a bad week–about 90% of my job is the kind that doesn’t get noticed if it works correctly.

So I was inspired to share something of a “stripped bolt” story one week (which went over like a lead-balloon, but nothing-ventured-nothing-gained). I always felt that story fit a longer form than a Yammer post, so here we all are.

Continue reading “Stripped Bolts” →

0

Code Elevator

Two opposing chevron arrows showing the relative position of several adjectives on a "worse to better" scale

I worked for the logistics arm of a very large fashion company based here in Columbus for a few years, and one of the things I really liked about the culture there was how wrapped up in the mood elevator they were.

What I like about the Mood Elevator (and similar tools) is that when used properly, it provides a common language which leads to a better level of clarity about a situation. You can say things like “I’m struggling to keep the mood elevator at curious right now” and (while maybe a little corny) everyone will know you’re not in agreement with whatever is going on, but still open to being sold. Shorthand is an amazing thing sometimes.

 

Continue reading “Code Elevator” →

3

Blog at WordPress.com.

Up ↑