Virtual Collaboration through Distributed Pair Programming

Pair programming is a practice in which two programmers work together at one computer, collaborating on the same design, algorithm, code or test. Studies have shown that pair programmers produce higher quality code in essentially the same amount of time as solo programmers. Additional benefits include increased job satisfaction, improved team communication, and efficient tacit knowledge sharing. However, it may not always be possible for all team members to be collocated due to the rise in teleworking and geographically distributed teams. This paper analyzes the results of two distributed pair programming experiments administered at North Carolina State University. Experiment participants used readily available off-the-shelf applications for collaborative development. The results of the experiments indicate that virtual collaboration by distributed pair programmers is on par with collocated collaboration.