Re: Design for Cocoa (was Re: Can a subclass of NSDictionary do this?)
Re: Design for Cocoa (was Re: Can a subclass of NSDictionary do this?)
- Subject: Re: Design for Cocoa (was Re: Can a subclass of NSDictionary do this?)
- From: Scott Anguish <email@hidden>
- Date: Wed, 23 Jul 2003 01:33:55 -0400
On Wednesday, July 23, 2003, at 12:44 AM, Wade Tregaskis wrote:
To me, programming is more of an art than a process of engineering.
If I'm going to build a house, I can apply simple techniques to design
(& test) the frames, using known values for my materials, etc. It's
all a matter of repetition - I'm not doing anything original.
Oh, I wouldn't say that... the overall structure of the house is
certainly often repeated, but the finishing points, and the issues
involved along the way are often unique -- and if not art, at the very
least shows craftsmanship.
I don't want to repeat myself in code. In my mind, everything I
write should be original - if it's not, then I should have written it
better the first time such that I could reuse it now. Art doesn't
have design, in my opinion. You take your idea, and you put it onto
your canvas. The vision is in your head - if you could draw what
you're going to paint beforehand, why would you bother painting it?!?*
But, as young and stubborn as I am, I'm not [intentionally ;)] stupid
nor rebellious. Everyone who's 20 years my senior keeps saying
"design design design", and it keeps striking a sore spot somewhere in
my mind. Does anyone else feel this, or am I really just not "getting
it"?
Good design program wise is an art.. more so than coding.. but art
isn't necessarily something that is perfect or flawless the first time
around. It takes time to develop skill, natural skill, while it
exists, isn't present in everyone. Sometimes skill needs to be
nurtured.
When I'm designing an app, I rarely do it at the computer. I much
prefer pen and paper (and it has to be quarter-inch graph paper, on the
pad's with the sticky snot like stuff at the top). I find that if I
put some time into it away from the computer I usually end up with
better results.
When I was learning Cocoa (NeXTStep at that point) I'd take the
documentation in printed form and read it for hours at a time away from
the computer... it is hard to get your mind around some of the
concepts, no doubt. but once you start to get into things, you really
can 'get' what is happening. It does take time though, and
concentration. There aren't any shortcuts.
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