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I'm currently working on engineering a new system to replace an existing, aging one, and I find the worst "coder's block" that I run into is when I've finished

I'm currently working on engineering a new system to replace an existing, aging one, and I find the worst "coder's block" that I run into is when I've finished designing a component and I go to implement it. Something about the fact that I already know how it should look/run demotivates me from actually grinding out the code to make it happen on my screen instead of just in my mind.

swalsh 14y ago
I'm completely the opposite way, when I have no idea what its going to be, i'm not productive at all. However as soon as I have a clear picture, when the entire design is loaded into my brain I just shut out the world and write it down. In code. To me its an extremely satisfying experience.
makmanalp 14y ago
Same here. I think there was some theory somewhere that categorized people into "starters" and "finishers", which I think is partially accurate. You just need a teammate who is a "finisher" who actually enjoys doing the polishing.
- endianswap 14y ago
  An intern, got it. :) In all seriousness, it's only a problem for me with bigger systems. When I've got smaller tasks, even boring ones, I can blast through them easily, but when I have to do both sides of it I require more self-discipline to get through the last pieces.
purplelobster 14y ago
Yes, it can be quite difficult to go from what you've designed in your head to cranking out something that is initially worse than you imagined. It feels like you already solved it, and writing the actual code is the boring part.
sophacles 14y ago
The fun part is solving the problem - so then it comes time to code and you aren't solving anything anymore, just doing the drudge work of writing down the picture in your head. That isn't really fun at all. I find that having someone around who doubts that what I'm saying is a good idea. Something along the lines of "that won't work, it's all wrong" is enough to convince me to prove that I'm right, because darn it - I know it's good. It's a cheap trick and feeds my own insecurities or superiority complex or whatever other pop psycology you want to throw at it, but it gets results.
tomasien 14y ago
I agree, that's another level for me, the "ok now to starting typing.... AH THERE'S SO MUCH TO WRITE! How does writing this first line even get me remotely closer?" syndrome.
- derleth 14y ago
  I solve that problem with 3 AM, coffee, and bad TV. Stay up late, get wired, and have background noise such that you get into a flow and stay there. Somehow, the Boomerang network (full of amazingly bad Hanna-Barbera cartoons in with some fairly good stuff) helps it along.
jlarocco 14y ago
I'm really bad at this. I have half a dozen projects on GitHub where I worked hard for a few weeks, decided all the interesting code was written, and then never bothered to finish. I keep saying that one day I'll go back and finish them, I just don't know when.
- jdefr89 14y ago
  this is also common for myself..
LnxPrgr3 14y ago
One thing I've found that works for me: stop designing before you've worked out every detail. Leave some design issues unsolved. Just get to where you believe you'll be able to solve them as you code. That way, when you're coding your brain still has something interesting to chew on… and I find it keeps me from going too far off the over-engineering deep end.

swalsh 14y ago

I'm completely the opposite way, when I have no idea what its going to be, i'm not productive at all. However as soon as I have a clear picture, when the entire design is loaded into my brain I just shut out the world and write it down. In code. To me its an extremely satisfying experience.

makmanalp 14y ago

Same here. I think there was some theory somewhere that categorized people into "starters" and "finishers", which I think is partially accurate. You just need a teammate who is a "finisher" who actually enjoys doing the polishing.

endianswap 14y ago
An intern, got it. :) In all seriousness, it's only a problem for me with bigger systems. When I've got smaller tasks, even boring ones, I can blast through them easily, but when I have to do both sides of it I require more self-discipline to get through the last pieces.

purplelobster 14y ago

Yes, it can be quite difficult to go from what you've designed in your head to cranking out something that is initially worse than you imagined. It feels like you already solved it, and writing the actual code is the boring part.

sophacles 14y ago

The fun part is solving the problem - so then it comes time to code and you aren't solving anything anymore, just doing the drudge work of writing down the picture in your head. That isn't really fun at all. I find that having someone around who doubts that what I'm saying is a good idea. Something along the lines of "that won't work, it's all wrong" is enough to convince me to prove that I'm right, because darn it - I know it's good. It's a cheap trick and feeds my own insecurities or superiority complex or whatever other pop psycology you want to throw at it, but it gets results.

tomasien 14y ago

I agree, that's another level for me, the "ok now to starting typing.... AH THERE'S SO MUCH TO WRITE! How does writing this first line even get me remotely closer?" syndrome.

derleth 14y ago
I solve that problem with 3 AM, coffee, and bad TV. Stay up late, get wired, and have background noise such that you get into a flow and stay there. Somehow, the Boomerang network (full of amazingly bad Hanna-Barbera cartoons in with some fairly good stuff) helps it along.

jlarocco 14y ago

I'm really bad at this. I have half a dozen projects on GitHub where I worked hard for a few weeks, decided all the interesting code was written, and then never bothered to finish. I keep saying that one day I'll go back and finish them, I just don't know when.

jdefr89 14y ago
this is also common for myself..

LnxPrgr3 14y ago

One thing I've found that works for me: stop designing before you've worked out every detail. Leave some design issues unsolved. Just get to where you believe you'll be able to solve them as you code. That way, when you're coding your brain still has something interesting to chew on… and I find it keeps me from going too far off the over-engineering deep end.