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I think that if you are reading > 50% of the time, vs coding, then you are still learning your trade. I write for MacOS and iOS, lots of new material each year, it doesn't take that long to get through the relevant updates, though. The times I've spent most time reading, are when I've transferred across industries, to capital markets trading systems, to web media, to web apps, to mobile apps, to big data, to VR/graphics apps. Each transfer involves an initial period of furious research, but even though the ratio of reading to coding stays high initially, I am generally able to start writing more than reading within the first few weeks. I did spend more time reading the first years of programming. But I think you hit a watershed, where it becomes harder to find a treasure trove of ideas about software architecture, for example, in a new book, and instead it becomes more helpful to advance your art by experimenting, and developing, and analyzing your own output. For what it's worth my main point was about the ratio of coding to research, and although the previous commenter disagreed, I think he also introduced a new point about the ratio of thinking to writing. I remember I used to spend more time staring at walls of code, or paper notes. Not anymore. If before my work was more chunky, now it is more consistent and smooth. That is a skill/discipline I developed. The article resonates with me because my commit frequency has increased since I have been able to improve my analytical process in this way. |