A daily code kata is every day implement the same non-trivial algorithm in a different way.
My assumption was that a daily code kata would force me to learn different things every day. I got this tip from the founder of the pragmatic programmer, Dave Thomas. He suggested that a code kata is 1) an oasis where it is ok to relax without a deadline and thereby have the time to really learn something new and 2) learn how to play with code, reflect, refine and measure code.
My routine goes something like this, I start with an empty workspace and pick one of the many different suggested katas by Dave or by google and then just go with the flow. Sometimes I feel like using Regex (btw, have you read the joke about regex?)
Then, I just code until I feel happy. And I feel happy every day!
Try it you to, it helped me to get better insights in different java libraries, javascript, ruby, how to implement a simple test library, regex, maven, eclipse projects among all the little things. The beauty of it all is that I don’t store the code anyhow. I just throw it away when I don’t feel like having it around.
My hypothesis is that a daily rhythm make me remember to learn this every day. Love it.
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Gunnar Ahlberg
http://gunnarahlberg.com
email@gunnarahlberg.com
