Oh, and damn you to Heck for putting that song back into my brain.
Being both a programmer and an amateur musician (www.voind.com), having any music playing reduces my productivity in more than half.
Whenever I listen to music (new or old) I disassemble it, analize it, stare at it, examine its structure, the way everything works together, the emotions it triggers, etcā¦ Too much to still stay focused on coding. In fact when I am listening to music it takes me all my mental capabilities
It is like having a couple making love all day next to you while youāre coding. Depending on how much you like that activity it would either distract you and/or make you sick and tired of that at the end of the day.
I am moving to another job and one of the my requirements was to have a music-free environment.
A fun/funny post today, Jeff. Thanks. I spent my childhood listening to that music. Imagine being exposed to that stuff as a child. Maybe thatās why I rarely listen to music, and when I do itās almost always jazz.
http://somafm.com/ is my favourite.
Groove Salad Beat Blender are the best for me, also Drone Zone works if I want something that is guaranteed not to distract me (no lyrics, usually no beat).
Well, when you suffer dyslexia, -which is not as we think in France an excuse disguised in a pathology- you focus more easily when doing more than one thing at a time. So when concentration for programmation is required music is a must have.
You would think people having problem in reading/writing should not be oriented at first to computer science.
But even though we do make more than average spelling mistakes ( = instead of ==, forgeting to close ), doing poorly under exams-like conditions, and get stuck with easy problems, we are not disabled people. It seems we are just different ; we do think differently thus we can for instance solve naturally some problems others canāt.
Therefore music is one of my everyday working tool just. And I guess I am not the only one.
Still thinking that open space is a great productivity crusher because they are so noisy and they higher the probability someone is gonna interrupt you while you have one phase of pure concentration.
For most people I donāt think music is the solution but instead that open spaces are the problem.
Iām quite happy that the radio is on a channel I like.
Having to hear bad music all day, thatās just depressingā¦
Hey! Whatās wrong with Starland Vocal Band?
Usually I listen to Digitally Imported online radio, Vocal Trance section. Iāve listened to this station for something like 3-4 years so I know most songs they play. Some may consider this type of music really cheesy, but I love it when I program. The words donāt bother me at all.
Surely there is no more sublime coding song than:
Clubbed To Death - Rob D
Pros:
- High tempo makes you work faster
- No lyrics to distract you
- Strong beat which you just have to time with each hard return
You forgot Rick Astley.
I tried to code to Led Zepplin onceā¦ wow, that was a BIG mistake!
I can listen to music while programming only if there are no vocals. I donāt know what it is about the human voice; it seems as though it engages your brain on a subconscious level somehow. If there is any singing with the music, I completely lose the ability to focus.
I donāt often work with other people, and in this case I think itās probably a good thing, a quick look at my current play list (party shuffle) in iTunes looks like and youāll understand.
http://www2.unkwndesign.com/pics/iTunes.png
The last time I had someone here they nearly went nuts.
Forget about music. I dont like hearing music anyways. I put my VLC-player in the taskbar and listen to TV-Series like Magnum P.I., Seinfeld or a recorded documentary. You cant catch much of the plot, but it is a nice background to listen to.
Zeppelinās Presence is great to code to, I recently discovered.
Mauro, you must be a musical kindred spirit, you do exactly the same as myself! For (2) check out Mouse on Mars, Stewart Walker, Delarosa and Asora, Baby Mammoth, Ott, Tripswitch. For (1) check out Kino, Frostās Milliontown, Ozrics of course and Enter Shikari.
While weāre on music - can anyone recommend classical music that would appeal given an interest in symphonic prog rock?! I should add that I think Overture to Marriage of Figaro is an amazing piece.
I canāt bear to listen to any music while I work - itās too distracting. Iāve tried every genre and they all interrupt my concentration. I used to think I was strange, given how many programmers do listen to music while working, but then I read a quote by Milt Kahl (http://legends.disney.go.com/legends/detail?key=Milt+Kahl) who, when asked what music he listened to while working, said Iām not smart enough to do two things at once. I guess Iām not smart enough either.
I usually have Internet radio running. Right now I like listen to Japanese radio. Why? Because I donāt understand a word. This might sound stupid, but when I can understand the lyrics, my mind starts listening to them, this distracts my focus from code to the lyricsā¦ bad stuff.
But since I donāt speak Japanese, listen to Jap. Music is like listening to orchestral music without lyrics at all 
People are saying and singing something, but I usually have no idea what they are saying or signing. And I like this JPOP sound - though itās not all pop music. If you like really hard heavy metal, search for the Japanese band Maximum the Hormone (there are some music clips from theme on YouTube); I like these guys.
Sugoi
(that means great, often used as cool - okay, maybe I understand a couple of words)
Great set of tracks, I canāt stop laughing while listening that ā¦ you made this Monday much more bright! I have to try to break coworkers in my office as well!
Thanks for the Mixwit link. Love that music. Of course, if someone started pumping ANY music out across a programming pen, Iād have to quit. You want music, use some headphones.
@Mecki: Check out Groove Salad on www.somafm.com. No lyrics, just wonderful soundscapes.