What are your ideal programming conditions?

Post by **Falco Girgis** » Sat Sep 03, 2005 4:14 pm

These are mine:

1) Very late at night so that everybody is asleep and I won't be interrupted.
2) I just got done playing a badass game (motivates me to make my own badass game).
3) Buttloads of Coffee or Energy Drinks (programming can be a bitch, and I'd rather be energized when I do it).
4) Either agressive rock/metal (for energy)
Or NES/Vide Game Music (something about it seems to stimulate my brain and relax me). Of course, Horse the Band would be the perfect harmony of the two...
5) Cold room. I like to be cold.

Post by **MarauderIIC** » Sat Sep 03, 2005 5:26 pm

Whatever, as long as I'm awake and there's at least one person online to talk to and mention my efforts to.

Post by **Falco Girgis** » Sat Sep 03, 2005 6:16 pm

With programming, it isn't that bad, but I'm terrible about that with homework.

If there's even one interesting person online, I can guarantee I won't get any work done. I'm just an overly talkative person. It's gotten so bad, that I've disconnected myself several times after school.

Post by **JS Lemming** » Sat Sep 03, 2005 8:15 pm

Me? Cold room like Gyro, video game music/remixed. I get more done near lunch time and I do horribly when it's dark outside. Probably some more requirements but I can't think of any more at the moment.

Post by **Falco Girgis** » Sat Sep 03, 2005 8:18 pm

Really? I love it when it's like 3:00 and everybody is asleep.

kilgariff · Post by **kilgariff** » Wed May 07, 2008 9:43 pm

Physical:
Middle of the night, when everyone is asleep.
Perfect silence apart from the humming of my computers.
A glass of water with ice.
Hair down and brushed.
Window wide open, for fresh air and cold (Scotland air is the best for clearing your mind).
My nice, large, Logitech G15 r2 keyboard. It's very comfy.
A sheet of paper and an erasable pen for brainstorming and code-related doodles.

Digital:
A clean, icon-free desktop.
4 clean workspaces ( a unix thing ).
A freshly updated distro ( preferably Debian or derived ).
A solid and simple directory structure.
Simple, non-cryptic filenames.
A terminal open for running the compiler, a tabbed text editor for the source code.
A firefox window open for function prototypes and other reference.

Mental:
(hehe, if you squint, the word Mental looks like Hentai)
I have to have a clear mind, so I can't be pissed off at anyone.
I like to be motivated, usually after reading something by Carmack.
For some reason, I code better when I've sent my girlfriend a goodnight text.
I prefer working in a clutter-free room, it makes a HUGE difference in the final code.

Post by **Moosader** » Wed May 07, 2008 11:20 pm

kilgariff wrote:Physical:
Middle of the night, when everyone is asleep.
Perfect silence apart from the humming of my computers.
A glass of water with ice.
Hair down and brushed.
Window wide open, for fresh air and cold (Scotland air is the best for clearing your mind).
My nice, large, Logitech G15 r2 keyboard. It's very comfy.
A sheet of paper and an erasable pen for brainstorming and code-related doodles.

Digital:
A clean, icon-free desktop.
4 clean workspaces ( a unix thing ).
A freshly updated distro ( preferably Debian or derived ).
A solid and simple directory structure.
Simple, non-cryptic filenames.
A terminal open for running the compiler, a tabbed text editor for the source code.
A firefox window open for function prototypes and other reference.

Mental:
(hehe, if you squint, the word Mental looks like Hentai)
I have to have a clear mind, so I can't be pissed off at anyone.
I like to be motivated, usually after reading something by Carmack.
For some reason, I code better when I've sent my girlfriend a goodnight text.
I prefer working in a clutter-free room, it makes a HUGE difference in the final code.

Holy shit, Ross. o_O

Ideal conditions for me are just:
* Late at night
* Have something to drink - Mountain Dew, Bawls, or Tea.
And maybe
* YouTube, GameTrailers, or TV/Movie on in background. I like background noise.

Post by **MarauderIIC** » Wed May 07, 2008 11:51 pm

I "win" with "whatever", haha xD. I have worried a few people with my occasional 'binge' style of coding before... Y'know, where bodily needs are mostly ignored, such as sleep, food, water, or bathroom... so after you finish coding and sit for 5 minutes, you're now shaking from hunger, have to pee really really bad, and are about to pass out because it's been like, 13 hours?

Although lately (as in past year or so), due to time, coding sessions have only been an hour or two, barely long enough to even get in the zone... :p If someone tries to talk to me irl while I'm, I guess, "zoning", I get a little snappy, heh, so I guess that "nobody trying to speak to me" would be a requirement. Text is ok, though.

It should be noted that now, at least, leaving a changelog that I know someone else will read can substitute for "someone online", so hooray! That's about all that's changed since '05 :D

kilgariff · Post by **kilgariff** » Thu May 08, 2008 4:03 am

LusikkaMage wrote:
Holy shit, Ross. o_O

Ideal conditions for me are just:
* Late at night
* Have something to drink - Mountain Dew, Bawls, or Tea.
And maybe
* YouTube, GameTrailers, or TV/Movie on in background. I like background noise.

Hey, he said Ideal. I don't usually code with all that stuff, but it's my like... perfect environment.

kilgariff · Post by **kilgariff** » Thu May 08, 2008 10:38 pm

MarauderIIC wrote:I "win" with "whatever", haha xD. I have worried a few people with my occasional 'binge' style of coding before... Y'know, where bodily needs are mostly ignored, such as sleep, food, water, or bathroom... so after you finish coding and sit for 5 minutes, you're now shaking from hunger, have to pee really really bad, and are about to pass out because it's been like, 13 hours?

Although lately (as in past year or so), due to time, coding sessions have only been an hour or two, barely long enough to even get in the zone... :p If someone tries to talk to me irl while I'm, I guess, "zoning", I get a little snappy, heh, so I guess that "nobody trying to speak to me" would be a requirement. Text is ok, though.

It should be noted that now, at least, leaving a changelog that I know someone else will read can substitute for "someone online", so hooray! That's about all that's changed since '05 :D

I never get a chance to be in the zone

I've never spent more than 5 hours coding without getting up, but I would if people IRL would just shut up and leave me alone..
</emo>

Post by **Falco Girgis** » Fri May 09, 2008 3:17 am

Uhm... Nowadays I find that I dev best after a good porn (or partner) or when I'm pissed off. :D

dejai · Post by **dejai** » Sat May 17, 2008 2:28 am

I like it clean when I work. I like caffine but I really like to keep shit in order. Having cables flying around is just so pointless. I got over all that by having a wireless lan server that allows me to send my information between computers. I don't like working in the cold and I like music while coding.

Arce · Post by **Arce** » Sun May 18, 2008 11:06 pm

I've got two different sets of conditions that I work perhaps equally well in:

1) If it's day and I'm alone:
I must have the room and area around the computer clean. I MUST have my bed made for some reason or else an OCD in the back of my head will make me carve my own heart out with a warm plastic spoon. Once it's clean (and by clean, I mean nothing really visible--shoving crap in drawers/closet works fine.) then I must get some kind of drink, and my teeth must feel clean. In the event that they are clean, the drink cannot be carbonated. Also, it must be cold with ice. Next, the room must be well lighted and I must have music on. MUST. However, the music HAS to be either stuff I'm VERY familiar with (meaning, I know all the lyrics to) so that I don't focus on it rather than deving, or it must be lyricless. Finally, I must have a decent pencil and pad of paper nearby, and/or a devboard.

2) It's night, there's people, I'm tired as fuck:
I must have caffeine. Lots. Load me up with all you've got. All. I'll chug about 7 Bawls right now. I must at this time be in a semi-comfy position (probably indian style) and it has to be night. Sound, music, it's all the same--all that matters here are caffeine and deving. Oh, yeah, and for this to work, I MUST have devoted atleast a min of 3 hours to solid ongoing work.

And....That's that.

ansatsusha_gouki · Post by **ansatsusha_gouki** » Fri Jul 04, 2008 2:02 am

i mostly program during the nite even though my ex girlfriend always bug the hell out of me

i listen to some japanese music, have sum food, have my programming books that i download and start programming

marmalade · Post by **marmalade** » Fri Jul 11, 2008 3:46 am

I might get a bit more coding done if I didn't feel SO DAMN RONERY and didn't need to whine about it on IRC 24/7. As long as I'm comfortable, I'm good. By comfort, I mean pillows/blankets/female life forms. Whatever.

COMFORTABLE, NOT COMFERTABLE! DAMN YOU EFFECTS OF STAYING UP UNTIL 4 IN THE MORNING!