Laws of Software Engineering · Practice
Practice
Pair Programming
Two people, one keyboard, one piece of work. They swap roles regularly.
How to use it. Use it for non-trivial work that needs careful thinking, knowledge transfer, or onboarding. The two people should be of comparable engagement, if not skill. The keyboard rotates. The conversation matters more than the typing.
How it gets misused. Two people watching one screen for a day is something else. Pair programming needs the role swap and both people actively engaged. Done badly, it doubles the cost and halves the throughput. Done well, it produces work that needs less rework and less review, and it onboards people faster than any other method.
Related
- Practice Mob Programming The whole team, one keyboard, one piece of work. The driver types. The navigators direct. Roles rotate frequently.
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Pattern
Bus Factor
The number of people you would have to lose before the project was in serious trouble.