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Comment by skissane | Hacker News Reader

> Whatever works so I can fix it and be home on time. I will even print (in paper) the code and step through it with a pen.

I’ve found before that sometimes I can’t see what’s wrong with the code on my screen but I can when I print it out. I think the printed page activates different regions of the brain compared to looking at a computer screen

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You should try other things that force the brain to begin interpreting something again as new input; e.g., I have found success with changing the font, or the colour scheme, or looking at a diff rendition of a change, or looking at the file with less(1), or even reading the thing in reverse order, provoking a similarly new context where I see stuff I won't have seen staring at the editor for an hour previously. Another thing printing usually induces is that you simply stop looking at it for at least a few minutes before looking again, and a break often helps too!

Printing is obviously fine if you like doing that, but I've found there are lots of ways to shake yourself loose and more thoroughly review your own writing.

If I'm looking for something and can't find it despite all signs pointing to it being nearby, I'll try to continue looking while upside down. It's often helpful for I think the same reasons that you describe.

One time, I was looking for a set of keys which had been tossed over the aisle partition in a grocery story and promptly disappeared. We tore that place apart and still couldn't find them. So I was laying on my back on the aisle floor so I could see the search area with my head upside down, and there they were. They had bounced and were hanging from the bottom of one of the shelves.

When in doubt, do something weird.

I increase the font size and just stare. Tends to work, too. Maybe we should be compiling them somewhere …

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