The Making Of a Programmer - Part 1
If everybody who knew Java could program, then everybody who knew English could write a best-selling novel...
What makes a great piece of literature ?
Great language ? Or, a great thought ?
A great thought expressed in a great language makes a great piece of literature.
A great thought expressed in an average language could also make a great piece of literature.
However, a shoddy, average thought expressed in the best possible language would be a shoddy piece of literature.
Whats this got to do with programming ?
Good programming is always equated to good knowledge of programming languages, platforms, domains, frameworks.
It is just like memorizing the list of new words ongoingly in hope that one day you could write a great novel.
What is required to be a good programmer is solid analytical skills, good algorithmic thinking, ability to discover patterns and express them accurately.
If you cannot express a solution in english (or another natural language) fluidly, chances are ZERO that you could do it in a language like Java or C++.
Unfortunately, most companies have a misplaced notion about improving technical skills. Companies always focus on training their employees in more and more programming languages, technical skills with no emphasis on improving their thinking skills.
As a result, most professionals and job-seekers aim to gather more and more technical skills to fatten their resumes so that they could be hired.
Consequently, both these ignorant points of view keep feeding each other.
Just like expertise of a language doesnt necessarily ensure good literature, expertise in programming language doesnt mean good programming skills.
It is the thinking that goes behind it that matters.
To really improve their programming skills, programmers need to enhance their analytical skills, their algorithmic thinking, their ability to express solutions in precise steps.
In short, they need to improve their Programming Quotient.
That is what Artistic Programming is all about.
Watch out this space for more information on how to enhance your Programming Quotient.
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