Pair programming is part of the broader umbrella of Agile approaches to writing software. This post describes the driver-navigator pattern, which is one form of paired programming.
The driver is the person at the wheel – hands on the keyboard – she focuses on implementing the current to-do item – and talks through what she is doing while she does it.
The navigator is an active observer – she keeps an eye on the larger picture – watches carefully as the driver writes code – possibly pointing out errors as they occur – and also keeps the “big picture” goals in mind.
IMPORTANT
When using the driver-navigator paired programming pattern – there is only one computer open for each pair of programmers.
At the end of the pair programming session, each partner receives a complete copy of the code that was developed.