Chapter 3 Basic tools The Basic Tools
Just like every craftsman just at the beginning of his career, will prepare a good quality basic tools, new programmers need to prepare a set of tools, maybe it's not the best, but the most important thing is that it appears to the programmer It is the most comfortable.
Then start learning and adaptation process, each tool has its own characteristics Curiously, we need to get the appropriate special treatment. Over time, the degree of running tools and programmers have become increasingly demanding, tools programmer talent zoom tool to grasp the better, the more efficient programmer. Along with some special needs, programmers need new tools to solve problems. To be like artisans, like, thinking about adding tools on a regular basis, always looking for better ways of doing things.
The power of plain text
Plain text: that is printable characters. People can directly read and understand its form. Use plain text can be guaranteed, however, that people can at any time freely readable form, no software to aid in interpretation; easier to test using synthetic data in plain text, for adding, updating, or test data is a simple matter, created for this purpose and without any special tools.
shell game
Pragmatic programmer and just cut the code, or the development of the object model, or writing documentation, or the build process automation - all these things we have to do. If we are accustomed to use GUI interface and integrated development environment to grow up in such an environment it is the loss of knowledge of the underlying shell for the "game" can not understand. This would only make the environment a self-limiting, self-productivity will be limited by the tools used, can not have self-improvement. The statement by using the shell, the tool will not limit you.
Powerful editing and source control
Select a multi-platform and can be used in both GUI version, there are non-GUI version of the editor, master it, use it for all editing tasks: code, documentation, memos, system management and so on. Proficient in one of the editors can improve your productivity, it can help you streamline the common operations, providing automatic indentation, etc., to improve your productivity from various aspects.
Source code control system, can be a huge UNDO key likened - a project-level time machine that lets you return to the halcyon days of a few weeks ago to modify the source code, time code also can run.
debugging
The only way every program, every programmer will spend a lot of time steps.
Among debugging bug it is essential to have the right mindset for debugging. To accept the reality: Debugging is to solve the problem. Do not go blindly blame for the bug a bug caused by the persons or things to be focusing on correcting the problem, instead of issuing accusations.
For debugging be the right way: Do not assume the manner of de-commissioning, as it will never find bug, you want to give up the identity of self-programmers to debug a customer perspective, customer perspective look at the problem and do not be afraid bug occurs, do not panic, do not hold treat bug "that's impossible," the sense of surprise, any bug is possible.
When modify bug, to ensure the success of errors compiled code without warning. Modify bug, bug appears to know where you are, in the process of finding the cause of the bug, so that their data visualization with the naked eye to track data, looking for bug reasons. For the reason, do not bug the first reason attributed to third party products or application code written in other members, but there is a large possibility of locating the position of bug in the application code being developed which.