Are you Coding and Don’t Even Know it?

Prototyping is easier than you think.

If you don’t spend your time writing code for money you may equate it to a jumble of green lines on a black screen. For some, coding is reserved for engineers and developers and it’s explained with terms like css, javascript, and python.

As a product shop, we’re experts in digital blueprinting, and we like to define “coding” a little differently. In fact, you might have even written a little bit of “code” yourself. And if you’ve written a little “code,” you might have even built your own product prototype without knowing it.

For example, have you ever built an excel macro to move documents into specific folders based on rules in a spreadsheet? When a friend of mine confessed to this, I congratulated him on being a developer.

We see this a lot in our shop — friends and colleagues telling us about the amazing little hacks they created in Google Docs or Slack or VBA. Most of those hacks are really software tools (“digital products”) that help make their jobs easier. And those little hacks are the best first step to building some really incredible software.

Parlez vous Code?

Code is simply language used to express the logic of a system. That means if you’ve ever run a formula in excel, linked and formatted some Google docs, or even just pounded your closed fists on a keyboard in anger, you’ve written some code. That’s because you’ve used a system to express a piece of logic. A product (or a prototype of a product) is simply the paperclip that corrals the logic and puts it to work.

And if you look at it from that perspective, more people than you think are writing code and building product prototypes to help make their lives easier. The scale, complexity, and value might vary but all software is made up of the same three elements:

1. Information Source
2. Interface
3. Your logic (the secret sauce)

This simplified view also happens to match up with one of the key architectural approaches of digital development known as MVC. MVC stands for Model View Controller and it’s the structure for the majority of current software and digital products built today. Let’s break it down:

Model: the structure or the map of the data. It is how the data is structured. As data enters the system it is organized according to the model.

Views: These are the interfaces where that data is displayed. For example, the homepage of a website is generally the index view.

Controller: The engine that mans the logic. A controller can manage the routing of a website (what you get when you go to /blog or /home) but it does a whole lot more. Logic of how the system works primarily exists in the controller.

And sure, you can increase the complexity in any one of these three elements quite a bite, but the basic structure remains pretty simple: Data, interface, logic.

Building a prototype for your software is simply taking information from a source, applying your unique insights or needs, and manipulating it to do something new and helpful. WARNING: After reading this, you may be able to see the “code” hidden in some of your favorite ordinary programs. (You’re welcome.)

Hidden COde

As product developers, that’s how we see the world, too. It allows us to notice opportunities to create all sorts of little tools and programs to help save time or make things run more smoothly. And the same will happen to you. Before you know it, a handful of emails and flow charts might become a super-helpful tax quiz. A simple spreadsheet (and a few beers) grows into a tech-powered music management business Or your daily “where should we go for lunch” standoff becomes and amazon “lunch” button.**

So keep going. Call it code or call it problem-solving. Either way you may be building a little something right now that could be a very big deal.

What you can do to build better “Software Prototypes” on your own:

1. Consider that data source
   In software development you can inherit your biggest bugs by simply ingesting bad data or misunderstanding the source. Spend some time thinking about what data you are working with and where it’s coming from. If it’s not “clean” can you find a way to fix it up front? Is there a better source?
2. Thoughtfully design the interface
   This doesn’t mean you have to be a designer. Simple and functional are the operating words here. You should still spend a minute thinking about how you are laying things out.
3. Document your logic
   A prototype is the first step in moving that all important logic out of your brain and into a tool that can do work for you. Especially when you are hacking at something yourself it’s easy to make assumptions or leave pieces out along the way. Really sit down and write out the why and the how of your logic.

If you reached the point where your prototype has met its objectives and proven itS value, but is limited by capabilities, you’ve must face the next big product question: Should I turn my prototype into a real product?

Already there? PRO TIP: Before you dive it, ask yourself SHOULD you build it?

Have a question about your prototype? We love to talk shop! Find some help at hello@coalesce.nyc.