Prep: Engineering Readings

How to think like a programmer

programmer = a more effective way for problem solving

solve a problem: a) having a framework

b) practicing it

Problem-solving skills are almost unanimously the most important qualification that employers look for

“The biggest mistake I see new programmers make is focusing on learning syntax instead of learning how to solve problems.” — V. Anton Spraul

Steps to encounter problem:

1. Understand

“If you can’t explain something in simple terms, you don’t understand it.” — Richard Feynman

1. Plan

Don’t just dive in

1. Divide

Connecting all your “sub-solutions” will give you the solution to the original problem

1. Stuck?

Debug: Go step by step through your solution trying to find where you went wrong. Programmers call this debugging (in fact, this is all a debugger does).

Reassess: Take a step back. Look at the problem from another perspective. Is there anything that can be abstracted to a more general approach?

Research: Ahh, good ol’ Google. You read that right. No matter what problem you have, someone has probably solved it. Find that person/ solution. In fact, do this even if you solved the problem! (You can learn a lot from other people’s solutions).

PRACTICE (reference: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPEJSJMg4jY)

Solving Problems

be aware of time management

• Read the problem completely twice

most important step can’t do problem without understanding

• Solve the problem manually with 3 sets of sample data

“Nothing can be automated that cannot be done manually!”

• Optimize the manual steps

much easier to rearrange and reconstruct and idea or algorithm in your head than it is in code

• Write the manual steps as comments or pseudo-code

• Replace the comments or pseudo-code with real code

Create a list

Sort a list or array

Create a map or dictionary

Loop through a list, or dictionary

Parse strings

• Optimize the real code

REFACTOR

As much as 70% of our time should be spent in steps 1-3

(reference: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPEJSJMg4jY)

The 5 Whys

Sakichi Toyoda, the Japanese industrialist, inventor, and founder of Toyota Industries, developed the 5 Whys technique in the 1930s

The 5 Whys uses “counter-measures,” rather than “solutions”

A counter-measure is an action or set of actions that seeks to prevent the problem from arising again, while a solution may just seek to deal with the symptom

As such, counter-measures are more robust, and will more likely prevent the problem from recurring

when a problem occurs, you drill down to its root cause by asking “Why?” five times. Then, when a counter-measure becomes apparent, you follow it through to prevent the issue from recurring

How to Use the 5 Whys:

1. Assemble a Team

2. Define the Problem

3. Ask the First “Why?”

4. Ask “Why?” Four More Times

don’t stop asking why and breaking it down more don’t look for holistic answer

1. Know When to Stop

2. Address the Root Cause(s)

3. Monitor Your Measures

(reference: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPEJSJMg4jY)

The Super Mario Effect

trick to success in learning, finding right framework, motivation

reframe challenges

(reference: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPEJSJMg4jY)

Questions

1. What’s the one thing I bring to this career (and a potential employer) that nobody else can?

I don’t know it know, but I promise I will get back to you with a thorough answer and then some; my motivation of my family and holistic health drive me to be here, passion is great, obsession to improve is better

1. What are 3 things I’ll start doing to “un-stick” myself whenever I get stuck on tough piece of code, logic, or feature?

Optimize the manual solution

Write pseudo-code or comments

Replace comments with real code