Remote work has killed pair programming. Or has it? If anything, it certainly presents an interesting challenge for pair programming when the two developers involved are no longer sitting side by side in the same room. But can you still successfully pair program in this world of remote work?

In this article, we’ll look at some of the benefits of pair programming and how you can use technology like the Visual Studio Code Live Share extension to continue to pair program remotely with your colleagues.

What is Pair Programming?

Let’s start with a quick definition. We’ll define pair programming as a development technique in which two developers write code at a single workstation. Typically this means only one computer and one keyboard. The developer at the keyboard “drives” while the developer without the keyboard “observes” or “navigates”.

The driver provides the hands that write the code. The observer-navigator provides the strategic decision-making for which files to look at and which problems to tackle. The observer-navigator also reviews the code that is being written and helps catch simple typos and other mistakes in real time. The two developers switch roles at some agreed-upon interval, typically every 30 minutes or so.

Benefits of Pair Programming

Now, why on earth would anyone do this? Two developers working on the same thing at the same time? Surely that’s a waste of time. Couldn’t you produce twice as much code if the developers were working independently on their own machines?

These are certainly valid arguments and ones worth examining. So let’s look at the benefits of pair programming. What good do we get from two developers working together?

#heroku #pair programming #remote work #remote working #vs code #vscode