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Clean Code Isn’t Enough; It Must Be Crystal Clear, Too
Writing clean code is a great start, but for programmers who really want to master their craft, you have to go further. You need to write clear code that other programmers can quickly understand and work with. Here's why.
Beware of Hurting Our Weakest Students when Moving Classes Online
Our weakest students should not be the ones bearing the greatest costs of moving classes online.
Voting requires common acknowledgement. Can that be achieved in automation?
Pantographs have been widely used for centuries; for example, in surveying and embroidery. With these devices, drawings can be enlarged and reduced.
Robin K. Hill explains the ethical responsibility of the computing professional with respect to voting systems.
How Do We Make AI More Ethical?
Scientists consider the limits of ethics in the realm of artificial intelligence, and how to mitigate its biases.
Developing Computational Solutions With Humility: Recommending Morgan Ames’ ‘The Charisma Machine’
Morgan Ames' book highlights the missing HCI design process for the XO Laptop
There is More Than One Way to Become a Good Programmer
A recent Communications of the ACM article casts aspersions on the innovative concept of code academy, a fast-developing approach to teaching programming. The analysis in this article, based on my own experience developing a code academy in the past three years, shows that there is no justification for such contempt. Code academies are a different approach, complementing the traditional university model; they do not offer everything that universities do (and do not pretend to), but also provide a number of benefits not available from university education. They can also serve to provide university graduates with new expertise. They fill industry's crying need for good software developers. They are a complement to universities (and MOOCs), not a competitor, and have earned their place in the battery of educational models.
Talented Programmers Don’t Tolerate Chaos
Talented programmers will strive to structure chaos and write perfect code.
Why IT Professionals Get A Bad Rap For Their Communications
Tips for improving business IT communications.
Sizing the U.S. Student Cohort for Computer Science
Mark Guzdial considers indicators that U.S. K-12 students will study computer science.
Why Is There No Well-Known Swiss IT Industry?
Herbert Bruderer asks why no information technology industry emerged in Switzerland in the 1950s, despite the appearance of computers from several sources.
Not So Good After All? Don’t Let ‘Altruism’ Kill Your Company
Altruism is often heralded as a panacea for management challenges, but it could actually be a death sentence for your team and projects. Here's why.
A personalized take on three things we have to celebrate about the Internet today.
Evolution Through Revolution: Getting Your Team to Embrace Change
Don't accept the status quo. Instead, build a team willing to fight for positive change.
Shape the Future of Computing
ACM encourages its members to take a direct hand in shaping the future of the association. There are more ways than ever to get involved.
Get InvolvedCommunications of the ACM (CACM) is now a fully Open Access publication.
By opening CACM to the world, we hope to increase engagement among the broader computer science community and encourage non-members to discover the rich resources ACM has to offer.
Learn More