Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!wuarchive!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!samsung!umich!bushido!dbc
From: dbc@bushido.uucp (Dave Caswell)
Newsgroups: comp.misc
Subject: Re: In defence of *Real* programming  - was Re: MEL - A *Real* Programmer
Message-ID: <1990Oct26.235730.7110@bushido.uucp>
Date: 26 Oct 90 23:57:30 GMT
References: <7380.271c3129@ccvax.ucd.ie> <1990Oct23.235720.16178@nas.nasa.gov> <6089@nisca.ircc.ohio-state.edu> <7386.2726d343@ccvax.ucd.ie>
Organization: Bushido Systems of Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Lines: 43

(>>"don't ever write code like this! Considering the fact that none of you
(>>were able to figure out what it did demonstrates that it is very
(>>poor code".
(>>
(>>In otherwords, be clever when you have to, not just to show off.
(> 
(> Exactly.  Fortunately as a new student to programming I have a very
(> good instructor who emphasizes this very thing.  In the first weeks
(> of class he has already emphasized portability and threatened to
(> anonymously distribute each of our own programs to the rest of the
(> class just to see if WE can be easily deciphered by our own colleagues.
(
(I don't want to start a whole thread on this topic, but I feel I couldn't
(let this stuff pass.
[stuff deleted]

(It seems to me that there is a strong element of quiche-eating entering
(computers these days. Perhaps it's that people who heretofore would not
(have taken to computers now feel "Ah, computers are very important. I
(should learn to program". Frankly, most of these people probably have no
(aptitude for hard-core programming. Sure, they can write payrolls and
(lotus macros. But they certainly shouldn't have the cheek to criticise the
(code of a better programmer merely because they can't understand it.
(Once the code is properly commented, and is efficient, it is sufficient !   

Just like anything else in life, you write for a particular audience.
If I'm working on a system with a group of poeple, and we're thinking
about hiring a new person we show them some code we've written.  If they
don't understand it, they don't get hired, we don't rewrite the code.
Everyone I interview gets code to write, and code to read.  I've had 
people with (they said) four years experience working with BSD UNIX, start 
crying during an interview.  That isn't pleasant, but relying on them as 
co-workers is even less pleasant.  I require the same amount of expertise 
reading and writing in my particular programming language as I do in an 
English teacher reading and writing English.  It is well-known that there
are orders of magnitude differences among programmer's ability, it is hard
to believe that many of the best ones can't understand the language
they are using to communicate.  In summary, write for good programmers
(people who know the language well), retrain (if possible) the poor ones.


-- 
David Caswell                             dbc%bushido.uucp@umich.edu