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  Stuff Everyone Should Do (part 2): Coding Standards

Another thing that we did at Google that I thought was surprisingly effective and useful was strict coding standards. Before my time at Google, I was sure that coding standards were pointless. I had absolutely no doubt that they were the kind of thing that petty bureaucrats waste time writing and then use to hassle people who are actually productive. I was seriously wrong. At Google, I could look at any piece of code, anywhere in Google's codebase, and I could read it. The fact that I wa...

   Programming,Code standards,Rules,Stringe     2011-08-15 07:33:02

  Learn from Haskell - Functional, Reusable JavaScript

Learn You a Haskell: For Great Good? For the last couple months I have been learning Haskell. Because there are so many unfamiliar concepts, it feels like learning to program all over again. At i.TV, we write a lot of JavaScript (node.js and front end). While many functional/haskell paradigms don’t translate, there are a few techniques that JS can benefit from. There are Haskell library functions for everything. At first I thought this was just because it was mature, but then I notice...

   JavaScript,Haskell,Functional,Reusability,Feature     2012-02-21 05:30:51

  Javascript Frameworks Are Too Small

A while back I stumbled upon a great post by Jean-Baptiste Queru. It describes the incredible depth of the modern technology stack. Layers upon layers of complex science, hardware, and software, each layer creating a simpler abstraction around the previous. This ultimately enables our paltry human brains to create amazing things that would otherwise be impossible (or really difficult). This is, in my opinion, the lifeblood of modern software development. For some reason, however, when i...

   JavaScript,Framework,Size,Small,jQuery     2012-01-10 07:20:59

  Lessons Learned while Introducing a New Programming Language

I've used a lot of languages (professionally) over the years: (off the top of my head) Cold Fusion, HTML, Javascript, php, SQL, CSS, ASP(classic & .net), C#, Ruby, Flex, Java, & Clojure. Each language has pros and cons. Being a programmer, it's easiest to discuss the cons - and in general I believe it was best said:I hate all programming languages - Matt FoemmelI think it's important to start with this in mind. At some point you're going to hate what you're advocating, so imagine h...

   Experience,New language,Tips,Risk     2012-03-05 05:13:59

  Are You a Good Programmer?

If someone asks you to recommend a good programmer, who comes to mind? Do you consider yourself a good programmer? What criteria do you use to judge? In thinking about this, I realized that there are different ways that a programmer can be good. So I present to you The Four Kinds of Good Programmers. And in celebration of Whyday, I include quirky Why-styled illustrations* for your viewing pleasure! The Philosopher The PhilosopherThe philosopher loves to write well-defined, well-structured...

   Programmer,Inventor,Philosopher,Conquero     2011-08-23 07:56:26

  Making Your Tech Conference Presentation, and Experience, Not Suck

Tech conferences are incredibly expensive, and not just in dollars. Even free conferences like BarCamps incur the expense of the attendee’s time. Taking time off from work or family is a hassle at the very least, and it’s time that isn’t billable. The draw of the conference boils down to those 45 minute sessions, and speaker and attendee alike should make the most of it. Speakers often start off by wasting time. They front-load the presentation with worthless informatio...

   Soft skill,Tech presentation,Advice,Highlight     2011-12-20 08:50:00

  Moving from Java to C++: An Interview with Rogers Cadenhead

In this interview, co-author of Sams Teach Yourself C++ in 24 Hours, 5th Edition Rogers Cadenhead discusses moving from Java to C++, what brought him to C++, and the best tactics for learning C++.Danny Kalev: For how long were you a Java programmer? Can you tell us a bit about the nature of the projects in which you took part at that time?Rogers Cadenhead: I've been a Java programmer since the language was launched by Sun Microsystems in 1995. I was doing website develop...

   Java,C++,Transfer,Transform,New challeng     2011-09-03 11:01:26

  Thoughts on Python 3

I spent the last couple of days thinking about Python 3's current state a lot. While it might not appear to be the case, I do love Python as a language and especially the direction it's heading in. Python has been not only part of my life for the last couple of five years, it has been the largest part by far. Let there be a warning upfront: this is a very personal post. I counted a hundred instances of a certain capital letter in this text. That's because I am very grateful for all the opport...

   Python,Python 3,Feature,Drawback,Embrace     2011-12-07 08:46:47

  HTML above flash (transparency + z-index)

We have faced this problem many of the times. When we want to display some message on top of all layers on a page or use some feature like jQuery light boxes. Normally the flash file continues to shine through the page. No matter what you do with layering the dom elements using z-index.See the layering flash content problem definition here.Before this, people used to dodge this issue with some fixes like hiding the flash area completely and then showing a static image of...

   HTML,Flash,Above,z-index,wmode,transpare     2011-05-01 15:46:34

  Functional Programming in C++

Probably everyone reading this has heard “functional programming” put forth as something that is supposed to bring benefits to software development, or even heard it touted as a silver bullet.  However, a trip to Wikipedia for some more information can be initially off-putting, with early references to lambda calculus and formal systems.  It isn’t immediately clear what that has to do with writing better software. My pragmatic summary:  A large fraction of th...

   C++,Functional programming     2012-04-28 06:16:37

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