Programming is considered a combination of art and science. It doesn’t matter if programming is an art of science, without a steady hand and practical focus by developers would only give us scientific theories.No matter how educated you are, you need someone to guide you through the initial process of your software career. I’ve gathered my thoughts, to prepare a checklist of best programming practices that are always recommended by software development industry experts.
When I’m saying “Practice”, what does it mean?
- It is a routine.
- It is a habit.
- It does not need to remember.
- It comes by practising.
- It needs dedication and commitment.
1. Be eager to learn
Nowadays, we all prefer to learn from the internet, books or any tutorials but, learning from your senior colleagues is one of our best resources/references to start with. Here I am suggesting all the developers take help from your senior colleague in asking doubts or take help in finding out the best software development course to enhance your skills. The software industry is an ocean, nobody can have complete knowledge of any subject.
I’m also not suggesting you bother someone very often in asking doubts or expecting senior developers to spoon feed to learn everything. By polite, thankful!
2. New technologies are coming every day
If you want to sustain in the market, then you would have to keep yourself updated with the latest IT tools and technologies by taking up relevant software development certification, tutorial or video sessions. Following are a few sources:
● Technical Forums over the internet.
● Technical magazines on various IT subjects.
● Technical Bulletin Boards
● Conferences, Training and Workshops
● Latest versions of old tools and packages, languages, etc.
3. Code Simplicity -Try to keep your code simple.
This idea initially executed by Max Kanat-Alexander, a software developer at Google. He has some interesting articles on code simplicity idea. His idea is to reduce the complexity of software development. The code simplicity goes hand in hand with other software principles such as Don’t Repeat Yourself, and YAGNI You Aren’t Gonna Need It, a mantra in agile development.
4. Testing is essential -Test from end to end
Testing has become better than ever as development. Testing has created strong protocols to catch the coding flaws and hassles us until they’re fixed. Every programmer/developer knows what it’s like to go on code quality. When you’ve got a grand vision of the architecture in your head, Test Driven Development (TDD) gives you more confidence regarding your code quality. Full integration testing ensures that all components are working together as expected and increases code coverage.
So, we got to know testing is mandatory even if the code change is small or big.
Some tips,
- Tight schedule, no compromise.
- Changed just a comment, still, you have to test it.
- Changed just a variable name, testing has to be done.
- If you feel lazy…it’s too dangerous.
5. Keep Documenting Your Progress
The next piece of advice is, always to document.
- Documentation is one of the important things to do when you have started the project.
- Documentation can help you to keep you focused on your goal and core values.
- Documentation helios you to sync with your client’s needs.
6. Code Review- Allow someone to check your code! Don’t Be Shy!
An attitude that allows you to acknowledge your mistakes is the first step to success. So, allow your senior developer to check your code and ask for feedback – this helps you in improving your code structure, reduce bugs in the product and this ensure final code quality.
7. Estimation- Set your timeline and budget realistically.
A realistic timeline keeps your software project from feeling too much pressure. Estimation comes with experience so, using relevant tools to assist with software development project coding estimates can help you to work at a faster pace. Here is a good software development estimation list.
There are many methods to keep track of your work like the agile method, which enables the scope of flex more easily. Estimation can be tricky – as it’s hard to balance between realistic and unrealistic estimation.
Wrapping up
This brings us to the end of our software practises checklist. Developing software is not an easy task, but when done with the best practices and the right mindset, it will become less burden, less time consuming and more effective.
We also realise that this is not an absolute list when it comes to the software development process, but it’s good for the new or fresh developers.
One can develop great habits by implementing these methods in your daily development process to enhance your software quality and also help you with your development process all your life!
Was our list of software development best practices helpful? Comment down below to let us know your thoughts.
