Are you using “pen and paper” during programming? [closed]

Question

There are many CASE tools, many software for diagrams, drawing, documenting. But can they replace old good paper?

Answer 1

Every day, all day! (Okay, not all day, but a lot)

I actually had a debate a while back on the value of psuedocode, and I was giving my input on how much pen/paper and some pseudocode could work wonders at times :)

Answer 2

I use computers to solve easy design problems, but when I hit something really hard I break out the powerful tools - pen, paper and brain.

Answer 3

I use a whiteboard for design and pen-and-paper for TODOs.

Answer 4

Especially when it comes to doing some math before the implementation, there's nothing better than putting it down on paper first!

Answer 5

No software can ever replace the sheer ease of jotting down ideas and solution sketches using pen/paper! EVER!

Once you have your critical thinking down on a paper you can take your time to beautify them using fancy softwares and tools.

Answer 6

All the time I use pen and paper, I find them invaluable tools to programming! Making notes, etc, etc...

Answer 7

Using quick sketches is an invaluable tool in clarifying requirements with a client. You don't have to be Da Vinci to quickly encapsulate complex business logic or UI behaviors in some simple sketches. Leah Buley at Adaptive Path has great resources on sketching for UX. Programmers can learn these techniques as well. You'll save a lot of time using paper first, before sitting down in front of Visio.

Answer 8

I vastly prefer pencil & paper (or pen & markerboard) for real-time thinking. It can handle just about anything my brain thinks of. If I need to create any official artifacts, I'll take what I've drawn and set it up using a tool. But usually the initial copy is sufficient.

On a side note, I'm still not sure why just about everyone in college switched to laptops for taking notes. You don't have anywhere near the ability to express your thoughts in Word as you do on paper.

Answer 9

All the time, especially for complex logic with lots of conditional programming!

Answer 10

I always find it easier to jot down what I'm about to draw/model before using application tools.

Answer 11

All the time. When I want to draw/write something complex, I don't want to master a piece of software to do it. Also means there are no extra applications hogging up my system resources. Plus, there's something satisfying about writing at all angles on a piece of paper :).

Answer 12

Most of the times when I program you can see papers all over my desk, some are wrinkled on the floor and some are not.
I usually do my brainstorming on paper and preliminary UML diagrams.
If only I had a whiteboard... :)

Answer 13

I don't use pen and paper when working alone, but I always use them when working with other people, talking with customers and so on. I mainly use pencils to draw diagrams.

Answer 14

In my opinion, the most beauty about programming, its heart its about designing good algorithm or pseudocode. I thought before that a paper and a pen could be a good idea but I went ahead to write it, They were easy programs though, short ones. I just approached the PNP question, not that I expect to resolve it but curiosity rules me, You do not need to face such a big problem to use paper and pen but since I got into that I realized how important It is. It saves time, makes you more efficient. General while you are programming you concentrate in small concepts like: Is this variable int...? To have a big picture of the program, the best way It is a pen, that lets you concentrate on a problem and the go with the technical stuff, memory management, security, fast code... If you go directyle into the keyboard, You might spend lots of time creating a big powerful function to realize at the end You do not need that because It happens that variable "a" will always be negative or whatever. But please trust me I just started programming but happily I have discovered the world of the pen and paper. I just realized that your question is actually nor a yes no question is it about comparison with diagrams, documenting. Pen and paper before writing the program. Documenting while You program and that It is a good idea to use a computer, I mean of course You can document it with papers but having you code full of /* */ It is just faster and better to read it and edit it again. So there is a place for both things but stick with the pen at the beginning.