There are two kinds of developers – those who wear headphones so constantly that they could be some kind of cybernetic implant, and those who I guess are not distracted as easily.  For me the headphones are a constant, except when working at home, but then the stereo is a constant.

I normally start the day with Opie and Anthony on XM radio.  This is fine first thing in the morning, but when the coffee kicks in and my brain reaches operating temperature, I switch to music.

I have always been a big Van Halen fan, but I find that the only time I really listen to them anymore is when a need a couple of hours of incredible focus.  I can turn those old albums up to unsafe levels, and usually get some work done.  Occasionally I will do the same thing with Metallica, but only the early albums.  I’ve never felt the same about their music since I saw Some Kind of Monster.

I also find that times that I get stressed out, I tend to revert to the soundtrack of my early youth.  This involves a lot of Simon and Garfunkel, Jim Croce, John Denver, and Glenn Campbell.  It was the 1970s - the decade that brought us the leisure suit, lawn darts, and Ken Olson of Digital Equipment Corporation told us “There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home” (To be fair, this far from the most short-sighted quote out there about the future of the computer industry, it was just the first one I found from the 70s).

Note 1: If anybody has a picture of a leisure suit, would they please contribute it to the Wikipedia article on leisure suits.

Note 2: I have no idea when lawn darts were invented.  It seems to me that it would have to be the 1970s.

Right now, I am listening to “The Weight” by The Band.  What are you listening to?