PSA: Writing out your logic on paper before typing code saved me 2 hours today

I was stuck on a JavaScript loop for a project last night in Austin, spent 45 minutes tweaking things with no luck. Finally grabbed a notebook and wrote down step-by-step what the code was supposed to do, and the bug became obvious in 5 minutes. Has anyone else found that slowing down and planning on paper helps more than just jumping into the editor?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_jenny2d ago

Oh man, "my handwriting's so bad I usually skip the paper step" - this is literally me. I have to squint at my own notes 10 minutes later like I'm trying to read ancient hieroglyphs. But the thing is, it works anyway even if my handwriting looks like a spider fell into an inkwell. There's something about physically writing things down that forces your brain to slow down and actually process what's happening. When you're just typing and deleting and retyping, you're moving too fast to catch the dumb stuff. I spent two hours once debugging a variable name typo that took literally 10 seconds to spot on paper. Now I keep a stack of sticky notes on my desk for when I get stuck. Just be glad you're not left-handed like my cousin who smudges everything he writes.

ivancoleman2d ago

Has anyone else's "quick fix" turned into a 3 hour rabbit hole before? I felt that, man - my handwriting's so bad I usually skip the paper step, but every time I actually do it, I find the dumbest mistake within minutes. It's like my brain finally decides to work when the pen hits the paper.