Two time saving tips for beginner programmers
Use IDE Shortcuts
As a beginner programmer one mistake I made was not learning my IDE Shortcuts. Learning your shortcuts can give you a massive boost in your workflow/productivity, which leads you to spend less time typing and more time testing!
Here are some of my favorite time-saving shortcuts for Visual Studio Code Editor
1 — Multi-Line Editing
Windows : (Ctrl + Alt + Up/Down Arrow Keys)
Mac : (Opt + Command + Up/Down Arrow Keys)
2 — Multi-Cursor Editing
Windows : (Alt + Click)
Mac : (Option + Click)
3 — Duplicate Line Up or Down
Windows : (Shift + Alt + Up/Down Arrow Keys)
Mac: Shift : (Option + Up/ Down Arrow Keys)
3 — Cursor Word Skip
Windows : (Ctrl + Left/Right Arrow Keys)
Mac : (Option + Left/Right Arrow Keys)
4 — Delete Previous Word Typed
Windows : (Ctrl + Backspace)
Mac : (Option + Delete)
5 — Move Line Up/Down
Windows : (Alt + Up/Down Arrow Keys)
Mac : (Option + Up/Down Arrow Keys)
These are just some of the many keyboard shortcuts on Visual Studio Code that can speed up your workflow.
To see more shortcuts, go to your command palette and type “ Open Keyboard Shortcuts ”. Here you can set your keyboard shortcuts to your personal preferences and learn about some new shortcuts.
Use Pseudocode
One beginner programmer mistake is jumping into the code without fully knowing how to solve the problem. Think of coding like building a house. You wouldn’t build a house without the blueprint’s so why code without having a set of instructions to follow. Before attempting to solve a problem, we should ask ourselves, how do we solve this problem? And how can we breakdown this problem into smaller problems? These step by step solutions should be put into a natural language rather than in a programming language.
- What is pseudocode ?
Pseudocode (pronounced SOO-doh-kohd) is a detailed yet readable description of what a computer program or algorithm must do. It is expressed in a formally-styled natural language rather than in a programming language.
- How can pseudocode save me time?
Pseudocode is excellent for writing the flow of the program out in a formal language to describe how an algorithm should work. This description can then be translated into the syntax of the programming language you’re using to build the application. Prewriting pseudocode before jumping into your code is an excellent way of catching errors in the early stage of the development process, which can save you a ton of time later on. Writing pseudocode also helps communication between designers, programmers, and project managers. It also makes a great reference to look back to whenever you’re stuck on a problem.
Resources -
Windows Shortcut — https://code.visualstudio.com/shortcuts/keyboard-shortcuts-windows.pdf
Mac Shortcut — https://code.visualstudio.com/shortcuts/keyboard-shortcuts-macos.pdf
Sources -