Meaningful Code (BeCode Brussels - August 2018)

In today's crazy world of software development, we sometime tend to forget that coding is a craft and the code must stay meaningful in order for it to be good.

Here is my view on how we can try to make meaningful code, and hopefully that will help some people along the way.

Transcript

1. Meaningful Code (Du code qui fait du sens) (parfois le français ça craint) August 2018 Yannick Lemin
2. Hello :) My name is Yannick
3. Hello :) My name is Yannick
4. Who am I?
5. Craft
6. Software Craftsmanship
10. What makes code Meaningful?
11. What makes code Meaningful? • Understandable (even after 6 month) • Shareable • Robust • Clean • Reusable • …
12. Have a drink!
13. Yann’s Tips to help write code that you can be proud of (hopefully)
14. 1. Working with a team
15. 1. Working with a team THE TEAM IS ALWAYS RIGHT
16. THE (A-)TEAM IS ALWAYS RIGHT 1. Working with a team
17. 2. Naming
18. 2. Naming NAMING IS HARD!
19. 2. Naming • Spend enough time • In doubt: ask the team • You can always refactor later
20. 3. Write code for Others
21. 3. Write code for Others •Others could be YOU … from the FUTURE!
22. Hello hydration!
23. 4. Write readable code
24. 4. Write readable code • Write concise, short and clear functions • Name them right (remember … Naming is?) • Will serve as documentation
27. 5. Careful with comments in code
28. 5. Careful with comments in code • Avoid comments as much as possible • UNLESS YOU ARE WRITING A PUBLIC API
33. 6. Pay attention to Warnings
34. 6. Pay attention to Warnings • They are there for a REASON • Get rid of them as much as possible • If you keep some, make sure you understand the potential consequences • Use Lint tools
37. Last drinking break!
38. 7 . Testing
39. 7 . Testing • Unit Testing • Integration Testing • End-To-End Testing
40. – Me “Automated testing is the most powerful tool in your arsenal.”
41. 7 . Testing :( • Testing takes time • Tests must be maintained • Tests can be complicated
42. 7 . Testing :) • Tests are a very useful documentation • Tests are a safety net during refactoring • They help with the development of unit features (regex, string formatting, calculations, etc) • When the tests are launched, nothing will be forgotten
43. 8. Refactoring
44. 8. Refactoring • Refactoring is part of the development process • You won’t write the perfect code the first time • Only write the code that is needed
45. – Uncle Bob Martin “Refactoring should never be a task on the board, it is never something that is added to an agenda. It is always part of the development process”
46. 9. Language
47. 9. Language Just use one!
48. 10. Code Review
49. 10. Code Review • Share the knowledge • Learn things • Give your opinion • Question the decisions • Share the love
50. 11. Conferences / Meetups / Hackathons …
51. Summary • Work in a team (THE TEAM IS ALWAYS RIGHT!) • Naming is Hard! • Write code for others • Make that code readable • Avoid comments • Pay attention to warnings • Automated testing is AWESOME • Refactoring is part of the process • Use one language • Code Review is cool • Go to events
54. And this one is important!
55. It may seem obvious …
56. but still I think it’s important to mention it!
57. DO NOT FORGET TO LIVE!
58. Thank you :)