Introduction

Starting a new programming language can be an exciting and challenging journey. When I embarked on my first Rust project at Microsoft, working on the Defender suite for the Windows platform, I was eager to dive in and build something amazing. However, like many beginners, I made my fair share of mistakes along the way. In this post, I’ll share the three most significant mistakes I made when starting my first Rust project, in the hope that it can help other newcomers avoid similar pitfalls.

Rust’s unique feature, the borrow checker, is both a blessing and a curse. It enforces memory safety and eliminates many common bugs, but it can also be a source of frustration, especially for beginners. My first mistake was underestimating the borrow checker’s strictness.

I initially found myself struggling with ownership and borrowing concepts, leading to numerous compilation errors. To overcome this mistake, I realized the importance of understanding ownership rules, borrowing, and lifetimes early on.

Mistake 1: Overstressing the Borrow Checker and Memory Management

Rust is well-known for its robust memory management, borrow checker, and move semantics. These features can be both a blessing and a curse for newcomers. Initially, I found myself stressed about the borrowing checker’s strictness and grappling with memory management concepts. Compilation errors seemed to be a continuous presence..

However, what transformed my experience was embracing the incredible compiler messages. Instead of viewing them as obstacles, I began to see them as valuable insights into Rust’s inner workings. These messages led to a deeper understanding of the language’s rules, making me significantly more comfortable with Rust. Reading the official Rust book and experimenting with simple examples further solidified my grasp of memory management and references.

Mistake 2: Paying Too Much Attention to Lifetimes and Advanced Features

Rust offers a range of advanced features like lifetimes, traits, and macros that can be tempting to explore, especially for those with prior programming experience. However, my second mistake was diving too deep into these advanced topics too soon.

Instead of focusing on building a solid foundation in Rust, I spent an excessive amount of time grappling with complex concepts like lifetimes, which can be intimidating for beginners. To avoid this mistake, it’s essential to strike a balance between learning the fundamentals and delving into advanced features once you have a strong grasp of the basics.

Mistake 3: Neglecting Error Handling

Error handling in Rust is different from many other languages, primarily due to its use of the Result type and the unwrap method. My third mistake was neglecting proper error handling practices.

I often used unwrap() to quickly get the result of an operation without considering the possibility of errors. This led to unexpected crashes in my program and made debugging a nightmare. To rectify this mistake, I learned to embrace proper error handling using Result and match expressions, the ? operator for error propagation, and thiserror and anyhow libraries, making my code more robust and predictable.

Conclusion

Starting your first Rust project can be an enlightening experience, but it’s not without its challenges. By sharing the mistakes I made, I hope to help fellow Rust newcomers avoid similar pitfalls. Embrace the borrow checker, prioritize understanding the basics, and gradually explore advanced features as you become more comfortable with the language.

Remember that making mistakes is a natural part of the learning process. The key is to learn from them and continue improving your Rust skills. Happy coding!