Do you use pen and paper while programming?

Question

There are many CASE tools, many programs for diagrams, drawing, and documentation. But can they replace old good paper?

Answer 1

Every day, all day! (Okay, not all day, but plenty)

Actually, I had a discussion about the meaning of psuedocode, and I talked about how many pens / paper and some pseudo-codes can sometimes work wonders :)

Answer 2

Especially when it comes to doing math before implementation, nothing is better than putting it on paper first!

Answer 3

I use a board for design and a pen for TODO.

Answer 4

I use computers to solve simple design problems, but when I hit something really hard , I pull out powerful tools - a pen, paper, and a brain.

Answer 5

No software can replace the ease of writing ideas and sketching solutions using a pen / paper! EVER!

Once you have critical thinking on paper, you can spend your time decorating them using fancy software and tools.

Answer 6

All the time when I use pen and paper, I find them invaluable programming tools! Create notes, etc. Etc.

Answer 7

Using quick sketches is an invaluable tool for clarifying customer requirements. You don't have to be Da Vinci to quickly encapsulate complex business logic or user interface behavior in some simple sketches. Leah Buley on the Adaptive Path has great sketching resources for UX. Programmers can also learn these methods. You will save a lot of time using paper before sitting in front of Visio.

Answer 8

All the time, especially for complex logic with lots of conditional programming!

Answer 9

It's always easier for me to write down what I'm going to draw / models before using the application tools.

Answer 10

All time. When I want to draw / write something complicated, I do not want to master a piece of software for this. Also means that there are no additional applications running my system resources. In addition, there is something nice to write on all corners on a piece of paper :).

Answer 11

I don’t use a pen and paper when I am working alone, but I always use them when I am working with other people, talking to clients, and so on. I mainly use pencils to draw diagrams.

Answer 12

I really prefer pencil and paper (or pen and marker) for real-time thinking. He can handle almost everything my brain thinks. If I need to create any official artifacts, I will take what I drew and set it up with the tool. But usually the original copy is enough.

On the other hand, I'm still not sure why almost everyone in college switched to notebooks for notes. You have no way to express your thoughts in Word in the same way as on paper.

Answer 13

In most cases, when I program, you can see documents on my desk, some of them wrinkled on the floor, and some not.
I usually do my brainstorming on paper and preliminary UML diagrams.
If I had a board ... :)

Answer 14

In my opinion, the most beauty in programming, his heart is about developing a good algorithm or pseudo-code. I thought paper and pen might be a good idea, but I went to write, they were easy programs, albeit short ones. I just approached the issue of PNP, not that I am waiting for permission, but my name is curiosity, you don’t have to face such a big problem to use paper and pen, but since I realized that I understood how much this important. It saves time, makes you more efficient. General, while you are programming, you concentrate on small concepts: Is this variable int ...? To have an overall picture of the program, the best way is a pen that allows you to focus on the problem and go with technical material, memory management, security, fast code ... If you switch directyle to the keyboard, you can spend a lot of time creating a great powerful function, to realize it at the end. You do not need this, because it happens that the variable "a" will always be negative or whatever. But please believe me, I just started programming, but, fortunately, I opened the world of pens and paper. I just realized that your question is actually not a question, but a question about comparison with diagrams, documentation. Pen and paper before recording a program. Documenting while you are programming, and that it is a good idea to use a computer, I mean, of course, you can document it with documents, but you have code complete / * * / It's just faster and better to read and edit it again. So there is room for both things, but insert the handle first.