Coding Standards

Bob Martin has written a lucid article on his idea of what Coding Standards should be. I agree with most of his points, especially his ideas on the value of pair-programming with the team lead:

Nothing is quite as persuasive to a young programmer than pairing with the lead programmer and hearing him say: “We don’t do things that way; we do things this way.”

With our new eComm team, I have set aside 1-2 hours each iteration to sit with each developer and pair-program with them. I drive for half-an-hour, and then they drive for half-an-hour. Coupled with empathy and tact, the hard-nosed coder will relent to doing things The Right Way™; for the greater good, and the greatness of the team.Once the team gets enough experience, I hope to have them start pair-programming with each other. When new recruits join the team, they spend some time pair-programming with the Team Lead. When they get comfortable, they pair-up with other members of the team occasionally.Achieving a level of consistency and fluidity to the code, brings out a certain enjoyment and pride for development. Though I understand the plight of the team lead in which there is rarely time to catch up on work, let alone spend time reviewing code, or even sitting down and pairing with them, I sincerely believe it only takes 1-2 hrs to reap years of benefit.