Description:

We have many metaphors for software: Code as art, code as craft, code as science. Steve finds another one particularly useful: Code as literature. As one example, when writing prose, you must consider your audience. When writing software, several audiences will ‘read’ your work: the computer, your teammates, and end-users. Documentation must be written for multiple audiences as well. This is just one example of the parallel between the two.

In this talk, Steve will discuss programming as an act of composition, and how this mindset can be used to improve the code you write. He’ll point out some of the unique problems that composing software brings to the table, and how to address them.