What? Also known as Ensemble Programming, is a software development approach where two or more team members work together using a shared computer on the same task with everyone focusing on contributing their best toward the work at hand. Focus is a key ingredient to having successful social programming sessions. Why I would limit my team throughput by co-working on the same thing? Having more eyes and more brains (hence focus is key), on the same problem or task usually brin

Whether your preferred origin story is the moth caught in the relay, or the cockroach in the valve tube, there comes a time when you need to start teaching the art of debugging code. Many firms overlook this critical aspect of training, assuming that engineers already have debugging skills ingrained - don’t believe me? Just ask any of your developers - who taught you to debug code? An understanding of solid debugging principles not only reduces debugging time, it can grea

Years ago, a marketing campaign used the phrase "What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas." When I teach object-oriented design for Java developers and I introduce the concept of encapsulation, I use a slightly modified version of Sin City's slogan. It's meant to emphasize the importance of the Agile principle concerning technical excellence when designing loosely coupled, highly cohesive classes (i.e., designing to interfaces). My version of the slogan goes like this, "What hap