[Python Mastery] The hidden costs of "copy-paste" Python programming

Hey there,

Here's a development story that plays out thousands of times each day:

Avid Pythonista Max is working on a function to find the 10 oldest files in a nested directory hierarchy.

He needs to solve this problem to help automate a complicated (manual) workflow for one of his clients, an accounting firm.

So Max pulls up Firefox and punches some keywords into the StackOverflow search box—

And, lo and behold, a helpful looking answer pops out at him among the first few search results.

The "answer" involves about 20 lines of terse Python code. It uses the os.walk function and the heapq module internally.

Max doesn't know much about those—but the guy who wrote the answer has a reputation score of 49,717...

Max really needs to get this file search thing working so he copies the relevant lines of code from the StackOverflow answer and pastes them into his code editor.

Some slight renaming and adding a few imports later it's "Mission Accomplished!" and Max can wander off and grab another cup of coffee.

Great job!

That's how programming is supposed to work these days, right?

I'm not so sure...

Becoming "stuck" and needing to do some research is a daily occurrence for any programmer I know (myself included).

But every time that happens, you can make an impactful LONG-TERM CHOICE:

Do you jump to the first StackOverflow answer and implement whatever is suggested there—

Or do you use the answer as inspiration and take the time to learn a novel concept from the ground up, that you can then use to solve the problem at hand?

Either option solves the problem...and both have their applications in practice.

Here's how I like to think about this choice:

Taking the time to study a problem is like *improving your vocabulary* in a foreign language.

You build up a body of knowledge over time that you can benefit from in the long run.

Copy-and-pasting the first answer that seems reasonable, on the other hand, is like *hiring a translator*.

Yes, it solves the problem immediately, but you'll depend on the translator FOREVER.

There's a lot of "hire a translator"-style advice out there in the programming world.

And it's often to your detriment.

I'm not trying to knock StackOverflow by the way. It's a resource I use almost daily.

My point is:

When you look at the whole picture, convenience always comes with hidden costs.

In the long run, "building your vocabulary" is the much better strategy to achieve fluency.

This is the exact philosophy behind my book "Python Tricks: A Buffet of Awesome Python Features".

It's NOT a tome of code snippets to mindlessly copy and paste from (which are a dime a dozen).

Instead, you'll understand Python's best practices from the ground up—with a clear and logical narrative, and step-by-step examples:

>> Click here to see how to take your Python skills to the next level (without resorting to Stack Overflow "copy pasta")

Happy Pythoning!

— Dan Bader