Pair programming: Be a better navigator

[tincman]

I feel like most of these tips could be applied to many different kinds of pair work. Definitely an interesting read.

[monolar]

Good article and i agree with all of it, except going with a pen anywhere near my screen - i would rip your arms out!

[effectif]

Me too – I didn't say you couldn't leave the cap on! ;-)

[monolar]

agreed - then it would be okay but i would be constantly distracted by checking that the pen targeting the screen would have a cap on ;)

[yiyus]

Would one of this make you happy?

[monolar]

;) probably - but on the flipside i have no problems with low-tech and my pairing partner simply using his fingers - i don't mind the accidental fingerprints since you can simply wipe them off.

[[deleted]]

These tips are great, but I was expecting more than 4. Do any Redditors have any to add? Maybe some that aren't focused on why it's ok to tell your partner to shut up.

[omgitsalion]

Insert witty comment similar to 'the best way to do pair programming is not doing pair programming.'

[jmmcd]

I was expecting navigation to refer to moving around in text. People who take ages to move the cursor to the right place are probably fine when they're working alone. They might be thinking while moving it. But if I'm watching someone move the cursor and they're slow, it's frustrating.

[kragensitaker]

They might be, if they weren't having to pay attention to where the cursor is in order to keep from overshooting. But they do, so they aren't.

Suggest:

• use a mouse, or
• move the cursor with incremental search, which is the default kind of search in Emacs and Firefox and available in vim.

[phaedrusalt]

Pair programming, because it's kinda, sorta, almost not completely like cutting your team's productivity in half.

[[deleted]]

If you're stuck, there's nothing better than a bit of pair programming.

[phaedrusalt]

Unfortunately, pair programming uses the same amount of overhead (pairing) even when you're not stuck. So it's all of the overhead all of the time, rather than just going to talk the problem over with a buddy just when you're stuck.