tharn : Java Glossary

by Roedy Green ©1996-2008 Canadian Mind Products
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tharn

going tharn is a deer-in-the-headlights panic and paralysis caused by trying to solve too many aspects of a computer programming problem at once. It is a type of overwhelm. It is the normal state for newbies, and can also hit experienced programmers especially under deadline, emotional stress or illness. What can you do about it?

When you write your first cut of code, consider only the most common case. Then gradually add the complications. If you try to solve all the complications at once, your brain will freeze up.
If you can’t solve a problem, try to think of a simpler, vaguely related problem and solve that first. Then add the complications one at a time. Don’t worry if this simpler solution seems useless. You will be much smarter and clearer headed after cracking it.
Make a to-do worry list. It is merely a list of things to do or to be worried about later. Putting them on the list ensures you won’t forget them, but clears your mind of them to concentrate on other matters. You might note, "Make sure the code works when the file is empty." Then think only about the ordinary case. Most of the time the code will come out in the wash and handle the empty case with out special treatment. All you have to do is do a quick check when you are done that it does. Finished idiomatic code tends to handle the strange cases automatically. Half-written code does not. There is no point in worrying about handling the pathological cases until you have the the core finished and polished.
Do the easiest code first. It settles the mind to work on easy mindless coding. Your subconscious can chew on the difficult problems in the background. Write getters and setters, or Javadoc as a sort of calming mantra.
Write a chunk of code that you think might be useful in the final solution, though you are not 100% sure. Doing this clears the mind. You mark those details done, and stop fretting over them. You also a have more concrete tool to think with about the final solution. Sometimes, you find that the terribly difficult thing you have been so dreading is just three lines of code that plug several of these promising modules together. The only reason it was complicated was that you were trying to think about all the details at once. Cutting off and even temporarily finishing any part of the problem frees your mind form chewing on those details. It lets you then focus on some other aspect of the remaining problem.

recommend book⇒Watership Down

paperback

ISBN10:

0-380-00293-0

ISBN13:

978-0-380-00293-1

publisher:

Avon

published:

1976-01-01

by:

Richard Adams

The term tharn comes from the book Watership Down which describes the universe from the point of view of a herd of rabbits. The rabbits have to deal with their paralysing fear. It is a book similar to Lord Of The Rings, but without the magical element. It is one of the most absorbing books I ever read.

	amazon.ca	amazon.com
	chapters.indigo.ca	powells.com
	amazon.fr	barnesandnoble.com
	amazon.de	amazon.co.uk

newbie

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