Use the Right Algorithm and Data Structure

Everyone knows the adage “first make it work, then make it work fast” to avoid the pitfalls of micro-optimization. But the example above would almost make you believe that the programmer followed the Machiavellian adagio “first make it work slowly.”

This thoughtlessness is something you may come across more than once. And it is not just a “don’t reinvent the wheel” thing. Sometimes novice programmers just start typing away without really thinking and suddenly they have ‘invented’ bubble sort. They may even be bragging about it.

Programmers should not reinvent the wheel, and should use existing libraries where possible. But to be able to avoid problems like the bank’s, they should also be educated about algorithms and how they scale. Is it just the eye candy in modern text editors that make them just as slow as old-school programs like WordStar in the 1980s? Many say reuse in programming is paramount. Above all, however, programmers should know when, what, and how to reuse. To be able to do that they should have knowledge of the problem domain and of algorithms and data structures.

A good programmer should also know when to use an abominable algorithm. For example, if the problem domain dictates there can never be more than five items (like the number of dice in a Yahtzee game), you know that you always have to sort at most five items. In that case, bubble sort might actually be the most efficient way to sort the items. Every dog has its day.

By JC van Winkel