Dojo 5 - Return to basics

Hmm, so this week's coding dojo session was a very small one.  I'm hoping that the reduced numbers has been due to general illness and the desire to stay indoors in the warm and dry, that generally comes upon us all at this time of year, rather than anything else.

It was good to look at the binary chop kata at last.  Four implementations were managed out of five, although more were discussed.  I really wish we had had more time to actively discuss and reflect on the goals of the kata:

1. As you’re coding each algorithm, keep a note of the kinds of error you encounter. A binary search is a ripe breeding ground for "off by one" and fencepost errors. As you progress through the week, see if the frequency of these errors decreases (that is, do you learn from experience in one technique when it comes to coding with a different technique?).
2. What can you say about the relative merits of the various techniques you’ve chosen? Which is the most likely to make it in to production code? Which was the most fun to write? Which was the hardest to get working? And for all these questions, ask yourself "why?".
3. It’s fairly hard to come up with five unique approaches to a binary chop. How did you go about coming up with approaches four and five? What techniques did you use to fire those "off the wall" neurons?

It was interesting that having a pre-written test helped the group greatly to pull in the same direction, but not to produce efficient code.

I must sort out my knowledge of java for the next session - I keep feeling like this is a game I want to play rather than just watch.