The Best Programmers have OCD

Sometimes talking, or in the case blogging, about a problem is a good thing.  I have been thinking what makes a good programmer.  Why is this programmer better than another?  Why can some programmers remember their code while others forget it minutes after typing it in?

Maybe the good programmers have some mild form of OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder).  The one symptom that seems to fit was constantly check and re-checking things.  I cannot tell you how many times I look at code and look at code and look at code to see what I have written is okay.  But the difference, with me at least, is that I can do this in seconds not minutes or hours.

There is many a time while driving, sleeping, eating, or doing chores that I figure out what is wrong with a piece of code. That I believe is the obsessive portion of my brain.  I cannot stop the process whether it is conscience effort or by letting to code lie like a sleepy dog.

Maybe it that obsessiveness that creates programmers that are the best.  None of their code is good enough.  The brain never stops. They strive to be the top of their profession but do not always work well with others. The skill set is well defined not to one style of programming or even one language type. They are more than bilingual.  They are a polyglot of programming languages built into a bundle of "nerddom".

Probably the most distinguishing feature is they sometimes tackle projects and quickly hack the code.  Whether the code is pretty or good that is not the point.  The point is that the code is done and finished quickly and can be improved on the next iteration.

Here is what  Mark Zuckerberg's letter to investors February 2012 about the hacker way:

The word "hacker" has an unfairly negative connotation from being portrayed in the media as people who break into computers. In reality, hacking just means building something quickly or testing the boundaries of what can be done. Like most things, it can be used for good or bad, but the vast majority of hackers I've met tend to be idealistic people who want to have a positive impact on the world.
The Hacker Way is an approach to building that involves continuous improvement and iteration. Hackers believe that something can always be better, and that nothing is ever complete. They just have to go fix it -- often in the face of people who say it's impossible or are content with the status quo.

Sometimes the OCD programmer is someone you would never guess has it in a million years.