In 2012, the author wrote an article like this: Write Less Code. It was pretty good at the time, but after that, I worked at PageCloud. Two years later, I look back at this article. Now, with two years of thinking and experience (hopefully), I have revised this article.

The basic truth of software development is writing code. But one of the greatest misconceptions is writing code for the sake of work. When I first started writing code, I fell into this trap. Writing code is a great thing. Tapping on the keyboard gives you a sense of accomplishment, as if you are fulfilling your dreams. But over the years, what I have learned is more important—as a software developer, write as little code as possible.

Don’t get me wrong. In my understanding, we should not put ourselves in situations of writing code or typing incomprehensible code. In fact, if we spend a little time thinking, we will find,Most of our time is spent maintaining code. Writing less code, rather than creating more work for yourself, seems like a pretty good idea.

Why?

Take a look at the tools I use and the frameworks I use. Everything I do and every tool I use is for writing less code. Using tools is to reduce errors in code and save you from taking more detours.

So, why write less code? Earlier, I said your job is to write less code, but looking back now, I was wrong then. Actually, your job isthinking, to think about the problems encountered, find a reliable solution, and apply it to software development. A byproduct of developing software is that we have to write code to solve problems.

Code means an end

Code is not that important. We like to convince ourselves that we are starting to execute and put our solutions into software. From this perspective, code is both a means and an end. We talk about the editors we use, our favorite programming languages, and the environments we use. Everyone talks and enjoys their work—there’s nothing to be ashamed of. The key is whether you are focused. Code is great, but it can also be an enemy. Even if we spend a lot of time writing it, it can be fragile, unclear, and even unstable.

This is why I say “Write less code”. Whenever I feel that a project or code block has become bigger and more complex than imagined, I think of “writing less code”. Whenever I write any amount of code, even page after page, I refactor it, rewrite it, and think “write less code” at the same time.

Sometimes, if you can’t write concise, clean code, writing a pile of code is a painful thing for yourself. Writing less code means writing clean and clear code. When you “save code”, it means you are writing less code, and it means the purpose of writing code is to make it concise.

So, what did I learn from this? I think writing code means an end, and solving various problems in software development is inevitable. So think more, refactor, delete old code, and write new code with less code.

Don’t hesitate. Start doing this from today.

Original source: http://www.evget.com/article/2014/12/19/21965.html