Are you obsessed by programming? 🧠🤯

Hello World! My first three #healthydebate generated more than 6000 views and 130 comments! So I decided to create another one, it feels so good to have interactions with other programmers!

• First -general- question, do you think you are obsessed by programming?

Obsessions are recurrent, persistent, and intrusive thoughts. (I removed unwanted from the list - as I hope, you love programming!)

• If you work as a programmer, do you code out of work?
• Around how many hours do you code every day?
• How many do you think about programming?
• Could you just stop programming for a month? (I add without having problems)
• Fun question - Have you already dreamed of (you) programming or code? Tell us the story!

You have nothing to lose, write that comment!

--> And don't hesitate to psychoanalyze yourself. I think it's a good habit

Another idea to convince you to write a comment. The comment with more likes/reply will have free advertising on my next discussion post (+2k views per post)

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I'm very interested in creating a conversation / a debate thinking if you think that programming is an obsession. I also have in mind to use quotes from this post in my next writings. So don't limit yourself by writing!

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Another very interesting conversation is about "why do you code?"(why do you love programming). I invite you to express yourself there too. Go check it out!

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Recommended reading:

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Comments

[erica (she/her)]

It started with an obsession with programming, and morphed into an obsession with development. Sure, just writing code is fun. I love writing code. I love debugging code. I love writing out a fancy new algorithm to manipulate data.

But them side projects

Thinking of new ideas, planning them out, keeping up with new tech and fun ways to implement it. The whole thing is a blast.

And yet, I don't really code outside of work. I've been working on rectifying that. Realistically, programming for 8 hours a day at work does take some of the magic out of it. I could surely stop for a month (if it didn't have an impact on my income), but I don't think I would want to. Other small "breaks" from code I've taken in the past (credit: COVID) have left me bored and yearning for a project pretty quickly.

As for if I've dreamt of code, YES. I've dreamt of bugs that didn't get wrapped up the previous day. I've dreamt "solutions" for them, of doing the refactor of all refactors, and struggling to query the database.

[tankerguy1917]

I really like doing side projects too. But, then I think up another side project, and another, and soon, I have a lot of unfinished projects that I don't even remember starting.

[Konnor Beaulier]

Same here!

[Rishiraj Purohit]

But have you ever worked on a project for 2 hours and then finally deciding the name you see there is already a repo you created and code look awfully similar to what you just wrote 😅

[erica (she/her)]

Project amnesia! I email myself side project ideas to keep track of them easily, and I've definitely being going through and found duplicates (or triples!) of the same idea!

Maybe it's a sign that I should start (and finish) that project!

[Ryan Brown]

• not quite obsessed... but probably,maybe?
• I do work as a programmer and Yes I code out of work for other projects and for fun
• Not counting work: I code probably an additional half-hour to an hour a day average.
• I often think about problems or solutions to problems with code outside of code hours. say an additional hour a day beyond 'coding time'
• I've dreamed code. I've 'solved' problems in dreams and them implemented solutions in the morning. I've also had (not quite) nightmares where the code just doesn't work right (which makes sense in a dream.)

Programming is a tool to solve problems, (and/or make tools that solve problems) As a tool I use and hone every day, my brain defaults to a simple flow chart:

• Is is conceivable this problem can me solved with code?
  • yes: think about how to solve it with code
  • no: move on :)

[Lorenzo]

Thanks for sharing!

[Pavel Gurkov]

• I'm not obsessed with programming in general. Obsession, as you put it, is an intrusive and permanent thought, which kinda means you don't control it, but it controls you instead. However, I may get obsessed with a particular problem until I solve it, and think of it for days whenever I have a spare moment.
• I do code out of work, have a number of pet projects which serve some particular, different purposes.
• On hours per day, depends on the day. Anywhere from 0 to 10 :)
• I could stop for a month, sure. Especially if I got compensated generously for that month, as that would mean I stopped doing any work.
• On dreams, sure, your subconsciousness will show you any kind of weird stuff dependent on what you were concentrated on during the day. When I was a little kid, I would program a programmable calculator during the day, for days in a row, and then mumble stuff about registers and assembly during the night. :)

[Conner Ow]

1. Yes! I am totally obsessed by coding. It's my favorite thing to do.

2. I just build fullstack projects. I don't have a job yet. Also, I do help out some people make free sites sometimes.

3. I code about five to seven hours a day. I wake up at around 5:30am, finish doing some stuff, and I'm usually on by 7:00 until the day ends.

4. How many percent of the time do I think about coding? If that's the question, whenever I'm bored, I'll think about how to solve an algorithm I've been working on and sometimes, I'll solve it.

5. If I stop for a week, then I go crazy. I have to be creating something amazing on the computer.

6. I do dream about coding a lot. Sometimes when I can't sleep, I'll think about how to fix something I've been working on previously and then I solve it sometimes. I'm not sure, but I think a couple times, I dreamed about a problem and actually solved it.
   Sometimes, I dream about a made-up or existing problem and get really stressed not being able to solve it.
   I do dream about coding, writing to people online, etc.
   I was just made to code right out of the box.

[Lorenzo]

More seriously, I'm very similar to you in that, I'm also 15 and also, I can't stop programming, even for a week.

[Conner Ow]

Man, I didn't know that.

[Lorenzo]

Just a casual rock song I love

[Lorenzo]

I was just made to code - New kiss song!

youtube.com/watch?v=ZhIsAZO5gl0

[Travis Simpson]

I suppose I'm a bit of an outlier, and have an article written some time ago about not being obsessed with it. There are other things in life I enjoy spending time on and experiencing, and I've found this to be more true the older I get. Programming is just another tool in the toolbelt allowing me to do a few things extra, much like having power tools in the garage to build/repair things easier. I feel like it's a tad bit unhealthy to push the view of the obsessed programmer as it shines a light on this particular group, creating a problem in the workforce where unless you live, eat, breath and sleep programming, you are not hirable. I work on coding projects anywhere from 0-10+ hours a day depending on my mood, what I need to get done etc. I'd be more than happy to go a good month or so without writing a single line of code. That's more free time to focus on other endeavors. I guess I've just always hated the feeling of being "locked in" to one thing and one thing only.

[Konnor Beaulier]

I certainly wouldn’t say I’m obsessed, but if there’s one thing I do more than a healthy amount is start a new project without finishing an old one! Just need to hunker down and focus on reaching an end goal. So I do code out of work, maybe for 4-6 hours a day?

[Lorenzo]

And how many more hours for work?

[Konnor Beaulier]

Depends on how many meetings I have in a day 😁
But probably somewhere in the 4-5 hour range!

[tankerguy1917]

I'd say sort of. I think about what I'll do and how to do it when not programming. This usually comes in the form of "Oh, that's how I need to do that", or something along those lines, after I've stopped for the day. I spend about 3-4 hours a day coding, since I have school and chores and other stuff like that. I couldn't just stop programming for a month. It's really fun and works out my brain in a way that nothing else has really been able to do. But, yeah, I'd say I'm right in between obsessed and not.

[Reaper]

I find something, I think I can build it and before you know it I have my own tool plus a few more repositories that support the original tool and can be isolated, also the reason there's over 100 repositories on my github and I can hardly maintain 3 at a time.

Also, since I really suck at marketting stuff, no one knows they exist either.

I like that there's something I'm really very passionate about to the point where it controls me but then I don't see any traction from the users side so it fades away for a day or two and then we're back with another curious hit.

[Pontakorn Paesaeng]

• I am not obsessed with programming. I do like it but it's not permanent thought.
• Of course. As long I find some fun in it. I love to try different things such as functional programming language, new area of development or side project that take not much effort. I am actually a student so this question really means if I code outside of the curriculum.
• It varies. I think it's ranging from no coding to whole day of code.
• I think my programming is a bit boring. I do same things over and over. Even I want to try new things, I don't see any reason or meaning of that. I hope it get better.
• No, I cannot. It becomes a part of me. I would go insane if I stop.
• I even get a compilation error in my dream.

[seanbei]

I think everyone has the experience obsessed by programming. That's why we are here. I really enjoy the moment I lost in the code. But only when I was a student, I had the freedom to obsess in programming. In a real work environment, it's hard for me to focus one thing for a long time. Always meeting or disturbed by others. I miss that moment.

[Lorenzo]

I think we students don't realize how valuable it's to be a student and have a lot of free time.