I am sorry to say that my trolling for links has been kept to a minimum this month. Hopefully these links will whet your whistle…
Foundations of Programming – Part 5 – Unit Testing – Karl has been busy with his Foundations of Programming series, but this is the cherry on the sundae. A great introduction to unit testing that even a veteran should refresh themselves with.
Where Do Experts Come From? – I always enjoy when Russ writes about the social aspects of our craft, and this article highlighting “effortful study” was another gem.
Guidance Over Governance – Push or pull, the eternal question of leadership. The third option is shoving a boot right up their…
Developer Faceoff will be a monthly spotlight where 2 well known developers will answer some quick questions side-by-side, and the readers get to pick the winner!
For the first faceoff, I can’t think of two more visible developers: Scott Hanselman vs. Phil Haack – The Battle of the .NET Bloggers.
Scott Hansleman has been on the forefront of technology and blogging for many years. Before recently joining Microsoft, Scott is most famous for his blog Computer Zen, where he releases famed “Ultimate Tool” lists, and primary driving force behind the Das Blog project. His recent adventure is trying his hand at podcasting which can be found at Hanselminutes.
Phil Haack is most known for his blog Haacked. Rarely off-topic, he flexes his mature .NET development skills with in-depth examples and anecdotes. By day, he is a Sr. Program Manager at Microsoft – by night, he is the lead of Subtext an open source blog engine.
I can’t think of a more evenly matched faceoff. Here we go!
Scott Hanselman
Phil Haack
1. How long have you been developing?
For money? 16 years this next Feb. For fun? Since COMPUTE! Magazine circa 1985?
As a human? For 32 years. As a programmer? 24 years. As a professional programmer? 10 years.
2. What is your favorite language to date?
Zulu
English, then C#, followed very closely by Ruby.
3. What is your favorite pattern/architecture?
Factory is a nice classic pattern. Also anything with queues.
My favorite pattern is the one that elegantly solves whatever problem I happen to be facing, but not wanting to be a wet blanket, I choose Decorator.
4. Is formal academic education necessary for development?
It can’t hurt.
If you mean CS, I sure hope not. I was a math major. In general, I think a formal academic education can help a lot, but is not necessary.
5. Are software developers – engineers or artists?
Cat-herders
Don’t take this as a cop-out, but a little of both. I see it more as craftsmanship.
6. Do you blog? If so how long and how many subscribers?
5+ years ~22,000 subscribers
~6 years, but haacked.com for almost 4 – 6700 subscribers
7. If you could read only one blog, which one would you pick?
8. What is the biggest mistake you made along the way?
Not paying attention in database class.
I hadn’t done a good job of testing a password reset feature for a large music community site. The person to catch the bug was the child of a VP (or an investor, I can’t remember).
9. Anyone in the software community you are star struck around?
Fortune 1000 CTOs.
Anders Hejlsberg – that guy is crazy smart. Once during a one-on-one conversation with him I kept telling myself “Don’t sound stupid. Don’t sound stupid.”
10. What is the secret of your success, expressed in one word?
