THINKING LIKE A PROGRAMMING SKILLS PROGRAMMER Analytical thinking - - PDF document

PROGRAMMING SKILLS

Analytical thinking - math and numbers are a large part of becoming a programmer Creativity - you must be able to come up with creative solutions to complex problems Resilient - You must be willing to learn from trial and error Attention to detail - Every minor detail is important. One character or letter out of place may cause a program to break. Resourceful - You must be willing to ask questions and search for answers Good Memory - You must be able to remember specific syntax structure of code for the programming language you are using Organizational Skills - The better organized you are the more efficient you will become as a programmer

THE PROBLEM

Despite what you might think: COMPUTERS ARE DUMB

THINKING LIKE A PROGRAMMER

UNIT 2

WHY?

Unlike humans, computers can't think for themselves

• r assume anything. They can only do exactly what

you tell them to do. Lets look at an example.

THINKING AS HUMAN

Instructions - Go brush your teeth STEPS:

• 1. Get your toothbrush
• 2. Add toothpaste
• 3. Brush Teeth

Steps can be avoided because humans can assume them.

THINKING AS A COMPUTER

Instructions - Go brush your teeth STEPS (SOME STEPS HAVE BEEN LEFT OUT): Open the bathroom door Turn on the bathroom light Walk over to the sink Turn on the water Locate your toothbrush Grab your toothbrush with your right (or left) hand Put bristles of toothbrush under the water STEPS CONTINUED Remove the toothbrush from the water Locate your toothpaste Grab the toothpaste with your left (or right) hand Take the cap off of the toothpaste Apply toothpaste to toothbrush Put cap back on toothpaste Put back toothpaste to where you found it Put toothbrush back under water momentarily (optional)

STEPS CONTINUED Open mouth Put toothbrush into your mouth Begin brushing teeth by moving hand back and forth or in circular motions Continue for a set amount of time Remove toothbrush from your mouth Open mouth Spit out remaining toothpaste Rinse mouth STEPS CONTINUED Rinse toothbrush Turn off water Replace toothbrush to original location Turn off light in bathroom Leave bathroom

WHY IS IT SO HARD?

Computers don't have the ability to think. As a programmer, you need to tell them exactly what to do. You perform all of the steps, however you are able to do so without actively thinking about it. When building

• ut the process for a computer, you need to tell it

every step so nothing gets missed.

IMPROVE YOUR THINKING

Take big problems and break them down into smaller more manageable problems. Continue to break down the problems until you get to the smallest level of details.

SUCCESS!

YOU'VE JUST FINISHED THIS SECTION. You're now thinking like a programmer.