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How to actually write a program?

Istvan Albert ialbert at mailblocks.com
Fri Sep 3 19:43:50 EDT 2004 
Peter Hansen wrote:

> I disagree.  I do development the same way, after years of
> trying out a variety of fancier and fancier GUI IDE RAD
> things which in the end primarily served to lock me into
> the vendor's tools and didn't really improve my productivity.

IMO it all comes down to the way programs are structured.

I don't need a RAD anymore because I spend a lot of effort
to make the classes and methods generic and simple.
I try to do only one thing in any given place.
It is very easy to troubleshoot an error caused by a
ten line method. (Disclaimer: As nice as this sounds
it usually does take a good number of rewrites to achieve
this)

But I can afford this only because as Arnold would say it:
'I werk alone', I have full control over every aspect of
the programs that I need to develop. If substantial parts of
a working program need a rewrite for no other reason
but to simplify them  it is just my call.

If that were not true, when one works in a team where
different people have different ideas, methodologies
and affinity towards a rewrite the productivity
gains that come from RAD environments are much more pronounced.

Istvan.
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