Bob the builder!

“Can we fix it?
Yes we can!”

They say you can divide all programmers into two categories. Those who rebuild their code every few lines, and those who write their code all day and then build, fixing syntax errors, and then running unit tests, and so on.

I’m trying to shift into the second category, firstly because it seems to be the sensible thing to do, and considering how long some compiles take (my average rebuild and link takes upwards of 300 seconds), doing it every few times can consume a lot of time. Moreover, there’s the time you get into “syntax fixing mode”, and maybe even debug later on, moreover, all the extremely experienced programmers seem to prefer the second and it helps their productivity.



But to each his own, they say.

I for one have a huge fear of writing large modules or refactoring code where I go from one pseudo-working state to another and the build is broken from then on. But then again, getting myself to get started on any major patch is a lot of trouble for me, though it’s no biggie once you get into the mood. But the fear of broken builds is almost a phobia of sorts.

What would you feel is the best way to approach a large project, write code that grows in a very organized way writing unit tests along the way, or let your compiler sit in a corner while you churn out the next masterpiece? Or a personalized mixture of both?