Week 3 - Debugging Logs

The most painful part of coding can be the debugging process. Thinking your program runs and then finding out that there are bugs in it can be very demoralizing. Sometimes there are cases when you read over the code and think you know where the bug is, but even when you think you fixed it, the bug remains. This can take hours, even days to fix the problem if you do not constantly check over your work and properly debug. A smart way to debug is always to set breakpoints and figure out exactly where the problem is. Constantly running the program after new additions of code can be a smart way to avoid a painful debugging process.

A smart thing that most people do not do is keep a debugging journal. This is so underrated however so very useful that people must start doing it more often. Most of the time people ask others to look at the problem which is helpful however keeping a journal to keep track of your own code can be useful in the long run. It lets people trace over their own code and sometimes even reading over what you write in a journal, instead of an IDE is all someone needs to realize their mistake. Keeping a journal is also a good way for future employers to recognize that you are indeed understanding what you're doing and also understanding how to fix the problems that occur occasionally. Apart from just having a journal to help you with debugging, it can also help you keep track of projects that span over a long period of time. It is very easy for you to figure out where you started, and how much you have progressed over the period of time from a simple journal entry.

Therefore, it is crucial that people realize the importance of writing and how it can be truly beneficial to them in more ways than they think.