Are you a night owl coder? Share your experiences with late-night programming. What advantages and challenges do you encounter compared to daytime coding?
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Top comments (16)
PROs: silence around, deep focus (including visual if you turn off the lights)
CONs: lack of mind clarity, coffee-induced anxiety, weaker memorizing, lost next day
SUMMARY: only in extreme cases, as the pros are technically achievable during daylight time and the cons are really hard to overcome
But maybe I’m just old…
Definitely after my lunch i feel like its night time for me 😝😴😴.
Haha! I feel you on that one. Get my tummy all filled up and I'm ready to sleep. 😆
So true 😆
[See third block for my response.]
There is no evidenxe to suggest that night-owls are any better at programming than anyone elsw.
@fyodorio suggests a lack ov mental clarity; however, that may not apply to everyone, as some people naturally wake up (and function better) at night.
Vitamin D from the sun makes people calmer, more awake, and alert, whoch may suggest "day-birds" are better at programming; however, this doesn't consider whether or not the night-owl gets vitamin D.
Over all, without extensive research, ee can not conclusively say whether night-owls or day-birds are better at programming.
Yea, agreed, I was mostly responding to the "What advantages and challenges do you encounter compared to daytime coding?" part and from the personal point of view, definitely. In general, some folks are much more productive by night and some just... fall asleep 😅 So no right answer to the title question. It's just too personal.
Well, that's a very different question to what was posed in the title, which is misleading. [CC: @ben]
The title's question was the one I was intending to answer.
No, but not worse.
Not sure, but a least they code quieter 🤣
I'd like to be more of a night programmer, but during the day I'm really busy and sometimes at night I get really tired. But, coding in the dark/night is really different, in my opinion I can be more productive and more, I don't know, something like: "I'm relaxing and basically I code naturally and everything goes really well"
I find that the key advantage of late night coding is the lack of interruption.
Working in an office environment can make it more difficult to focus. Headphones & music can help, especially noise cancelling headphones. With hybrid work, people may choose to be remote during intense focus. I also had one coworker who arrived early for focus time rather than stay late.
With remote work it is easier to remove interruptions by reducing your availability on messaging/communication platforms.
Overall I sometimes enjoy night owl coding, still, but I also recognize that coding tired – like being tired at anything – produces worse results.
It's the standard for me, but sometimes when I feel less productive, I change the routine for a couple of days
I do a fair bit of my coding at night time but these are mostly side projects or things I am trying to learn, I find I can creatively code, its debatable if it is the most optimised code but I have fun writing it.
Find the time that works for your personal rhythm, and use it wisely! Also, early birds are way better and more productive than night owls ...
I have coded in both mornings and late nights. Since coding is an intensely mental activity, I focus on the state of mind instead of time or surrounding. Generally I code when I am not too sleepy nor hungry nor too full :) whichever time of the day it is.
Also before I code I generally spend a couple of minutes trying to generate love for what I am doing by self-talk, etc. If you find your code boring, you will fall asleep no matter when you code :D
I code at anytime. No way for disturbing my intentions.