89 lines
3.5 KiB
Markdown
89 lines
3.5 KiB
Markdown
---
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created_at: '2016-03-23T20:59:59.000Z'
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title: A guide on how to be a Programmer (2002)
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url: https://github.com/braydie/HowToBeAProgrammer
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author: gnocchi
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points: 207
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story_text:
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comment_text:
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num_comments: 44
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story_id:
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story_title:
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story_url:
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parent_id:
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created_at_i: 1458766799
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_tags:
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- story
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- author_gnocchi
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- story_11348182
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objectID: '11348182'
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year: 2002
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---
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# [](#how-to-be-a-programmer-community-version)How to be a Programmer: Community Version
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Robert L. Read with Community
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Copyright 2002, 2003, 2016 Robert L. Read
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Licensed under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0
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International License](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).
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[Available on gitbook to read online or download for offline reading (as
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PDF, ePub or
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Mobi)](https://www.gitbook.com/book/braydie/how-to-be-a-programmer/details)
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[Available to buy as a hardcover book (cost covers production & shipping
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only)](http://www.blurb.com/b/6999069-how-to-be-a-programmer) - Edition
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1, published 04/01/16
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## [](#introduction)Introduction
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To be a good programmer is difficult and noble. The hardest part of
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making real a collective vision of a software project is dealing with
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one's coworkers and customers. Writing computer programs is important
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and takes great intelligence and skill. But it is really child's play
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compared to everything else that a good programmer must do to make a
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software system that succeeds for both the customer and myriad
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colleagues for whom he or she is partially responsible. In this essay I
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attempt to summarize as concisely as possible those things that I wish
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someone had explained to me when I was twenty-one.
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This is very subjective and, therefore, this essay is doomed to be
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personal and somewhat opinionated. I confine myself to problems that a
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programmer is very likely to have to face in her work. Many of these
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problems and their solutions are so general to the human condition that
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I will probably seem preachy. I hope in spite of this that this essay
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will be useful.
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Computer programming is taught in courses. The excellent books: The
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Pragmatic Programmer \[Prag99\], Code Complete \[CodeC93\], Rapid
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Development \[RDev96\], and Extreme Programming Explained \[XP99\] all
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teach computer programming and the larger issues of being a good
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programmer. The essays of Paul Graham \[PGSite\] and Eric Raymond
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\[Hacker\] should certainly be read before or along with this article.
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This essay differs from those excellent works by emphasizing social
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problems and comprehensively summarizing the entire set of necessary
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skills as I see them.
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In this essay the term boss is used to refer to whomever gives you
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projects to do. I use the words business, company, and tribe,
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synonymously except that business connotes moneymaking, company connotes
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the modern workplace and tribe is generally the people you share loyalty
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with.
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Welcome to the tribe.
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## [](#contents)Contents
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**Also available in
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[Chinese](/braydie/HowToBeAProgrammer/blob/master/zh/README.md) and
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[Japanese](/braydie/HowToBeAProgrammer/blob/master/jp/README.md)**
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[](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)
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How To Be A Programmer: Community Version by Robert L. Read with
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Community is licensed under a [Creative Commons
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Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International
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License](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).
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