How does a team program on a project?

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Lets say I have one big project.
And I need 2 people to work on one class. How would it all work when it comes to compile time?
I dont need to know, just curious .

Jointly agree on a design. Jointly agree to the task break down to achieve the design. Parcel out the work.

ruveyn

excellent planning and discipline,
though colab software is out there i have never really tried it for programming.

Regular commits to an online repository.

1. Break the project into 2 independent modules that can be programmed separately. Person A does the breaking, person B chooses which module he wants.
2. At compile time, Person B compiles everything.
3. Person B constantly emails person A to ask him what the hell his code is supposed to do.
4. Person B realizes that while the 2 modules work well separately, when put together they do nothing. He essentially rewrites Person A's code.
5. Person A kicks up a fuss.
6. Cue debate about the optimal solution versus a satisficing solution.

As the number of people in the group increase by n, the time taken to execute steps (2) through (6) increase by n(n-1)!/2.

That tells what the storage is. It is not a division of the labor.

ruveyn

The method of storage was not the main focus of my post. Committing your work regularly means it is easy for the other person to integrate what you have done into what they have done, so you don't have a giant mess when it comes to compile time. There is a talk on Google Tech Talks that mentioned this, where a programmer will wander off into his cave and not show anyone what he is doing until he is finished.

Pair programming even - one codes, the other watches, checks, questions.

Pair mk 2 - one codes, the other tests. Other parts, one tests while the other codes.

Good idea. The is nothing so helpful as a "sanity check". Since the most common error is observer bias, having a critical observer on the team is a must.

Do an occasional exchange of checker role and coder role.

ruveyn