I have been working as a programmer for a little over 5 years now, and it was with great interest that I read the article What is a Professional Programmer, written by Sarah George, and hosted at DeveloperDotStar Magazine.

I think I can say that I have been on the right path so far when I evaluate myself on the various parameters she has mentioned, viz., trustworthiness, teamwork, leadership, communication, constant updating of skills, an interest in minimizing risks and accountability.

I was pondering over the last few days over having the right kind of people in a team, any team, including a Software Development team. It suddenly flashed in my mind that I had seen a quote attributed to Dravid somewhere on the same topic.

At last, I figured it out. Dravid had given a rather absorbing interview to the Cricinfo magazine that appeared in the inaugural issue (Jan 2006 issue that had Dravid on the front cover) of the magazine. This was what I was looking for:

Fantastic write-up on the seven habits that can help one grow as a better programmer. Aptly titled the Seven Habits of Highly Effective Programmers [web archive link here], it is written by someone who has been-there-done-that. A must read for any serious programmer, or someone who cares about the craft, especially if you work in a team. There are other articles too on that site, and so check them out as well. But this is the best of the lot, as they say.

“Any fool can write code that a computer can understand. Good programmers write code that humans can understand.” – Martin Fowler

Programming the proper way

I love programming, and I love programming the proper way. I belong to the school of thought that believes that programming is as much an art or a craft, as it is a science or an engineering. For me programming is not just another activity that humans do to make money. It is my passion! Of course, I do earn money by way of programming, but then there is nothing wrong with that.