The notion that programming is an exact science, that in the near future robots will write flawless software autonomously is a commonly held misconception. I'm not saying that an artificial intelligence won't be able to best humans at the game of software development, someday. I believe they will, someday. I just wish to state that programming is not an exact science. It is an art form. And the robot that progresses beyond humans in this field will need to have a heart like the Tin Man in the Wizard of Oz in order to muster the requisite creative energy. 

As with more traditional art, interpretation is subjective. Good art, or as I define it here, art that transcends the ages, conforms to basic principles or rules that govern composition, colour palette, use of line and texture etc. And so it is with most good things in life, principles govern. Good posture is necessary for zen meditation, laws that when followed create the right environment are necessary for civilized society to flourish. There are core fundamentals necessary to create something that will transcend the ages. But these laws should be inherent, foundational elements like the concrete below a house or the roots below a tree. You don't see them but you know that without them the house would fall and the tree would wither and die.

So it is with programming. Yes, there are 10+ ways to write an app but the only good versions will follow a set of common rules. What are these rules? you ask. It isn't secret or even complicated. Like most principles they are widely held norms that are basic in nature. 

1) Keep it clean and simple. The most successful apps are basic, whether it's the mindless fun derived from hurling cartoon birds across a screen and nothing more or the simplicity of an app that just tells you the name of the song playing on the radio. 

2) Solve a problem or meet a need. No one will use an app that doesn't do one of these two things. But be careful not to try and meet more than one need or solve more than one problem at a time. An app must be focussed. Do not try to make it something for everyone. Apps are singular in purpose.

3) Listen to users and change or fix what needs to be changed or fixed. The worst thing an app developer can do is invest time and resources in building something and then abandon the users once it's out there and the buzz has died down. The best apps have evolved over time. Their developers fixed and changed things based on user feedback. As the saying goes change is constant. An app will quickly stagnate and be forgotten and users will grow frustrated when old problems return or their needs go unmet. Keep at it and listen carefully to what users are saying. This calls for a thick skin sometimes as honesty can be brutal. So slip out of the ego. Great apps evolve when honest criticism is listened to.

That's it. Simple huh? App development is art and Zen some. (Groan did I really write that?)

Graham Newbigging
graham@esyngen.com
(905) 582-6414
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