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Test-Driven Development

I've been programming since my second year at university and I truly enjoy it. A couple of concepts have shaped my style, including that of test-driven development.

With TDD, before you implement any code you write at least one test for it. If you need to check more possibilities in terms of input you add tests. The most important thing is a new definition of software working: it works when it passes its tests.

TDD goes hand-in-hand with being an empiricist. The most interesting concepts are the ones that can be tested and/or verified, and that is when a concept graduates to become a fact.

Software can still have bugs with TDD; tests often miss things. Still, as a core concept it has made me a good deal more productive both in coding and in being an informed citizen.

When I consume media I am constantly barraged with claims that get through my filters. Claims that include no means of verification, no details, names, times and dates, etc. are essentially propaganda, designed to alter my opinions rather than to inform me and allow me to form my own opinions. 

The volume of such propaganda has become overwhelming on social media, and to my loss I closed my Facebook and Twitter accounts a while back. I do better when seeking information on my own than when a fire-hose is inserted in my mind.


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