Author Archives: donespe

Rubber Duckies aren’t only for Bathtime – how to solve problems.

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When you are stuck with a problem it usually helps to talk through what is happening. Often, simply talking through the problem will make a solution come to light. It’s technique that has been around for a long time, but often the credit goes to The Pragmatic Programmer book that I mentioned a week or so ago. The technique in the book is called rubber duck debugging.

If the problem is with a program that you are writing, simply talk through the code line by line outloud to an inanimate object. A person would also work, but that’s not often possible or the easiest solution. As you talk through each line and explain them you will often realize that the code might not be doing what you were planning for it to do – thus finding the problem and guiding yourself to a solution.

I’m going to post a link to an article that goes into a bit more detail about the psychology at play: https://www.thoughtfulcode.com/rubber-duck-debugging-psychology/

Talking about your problems with a rubber duck will often lead to a solution even if it seems a little foolish.

Just Keep Plugging Away, Even When You Don’t Feel It.

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Today is one of those days that I am struggling to get much done. I debated if I should even write a blog post today. But, here we are.

As I stated before, come up with an achievable goal in the first place and then do what you can to make it happen. I will cut myself some slack since this won’t be a great post. But, you know what? A post is better than no post. If you let yourself get away with missing your goals, then it becomes easier the next time to do the same. Before you know it, the goals vanish and your progress goes with it.

So, make some effort to get toward your goal. It might not be anything major, but at the end of the day even a little bit counts.

You can do it! Just keep at it one step at a time. Results will happen.

Don’t put all your Eggs in One Basket.

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As the last couple of posts have shown, it’s important to continue to grow and expand your knowledge. It won’t work if you simply get something to work and just step back. You have to keep updating so your programs work with any current systems and that they still provide the experiences that your users want.

I have to admit that I have failed a bit at this, but as I’ve mentioned in the past there have been some efforts to fix things. At this point, all my apps are currently only in the Apple App store, though several of them are available for iOS along with Macs. I would be better off if I also made them available for Android. I have put a little effort into that, but I really need to focus more.

This blog is a way to keep me accountable and also to push myself.

Before the end of this year I plan to have at least a couple of my converted to Android. I actually plan to have it happen before that, but I have some other projects that need to be finished first.