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Refactoring in a large code base (was: importing: what does "from" do?)

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Rustom Mody <rustompmody@gmail.com> writes:

> You may find this strategy useful:
> https://pchiusano.github.io/2015-04-23/unison-update7.html
>
> particularly the section "Limitations of refactoring via modifying
> text files in place, and what to do instead"

A direct link to that section is
<URL:https://pchiusano.github.io/2015-04-23/unison-update7.html#refactoring-lessons>.

The author points out there are times when a code base is large and
complex enough that refactoring puts the programmer in a state of not
knowing whether they're making progress, because until the whole
refactoring is complete the errors just cascade and it's hard to tell
which ones are relevant.

    That’s bad for two reasons. Without this feedback, you may be
    writing code that is making things worse, not better, building
    further on faulty assumptions. But more than the technical
    difficulties, working in this state is demoralizing, and it kills
    focus and productivity.

    All right, so what do we do instead? Should we just avoid even
    considering any codebase transformations that are intractable with
    the “edit and fix errors” approach? No, that’s too conservative.
    Instead, we just have to *avoid modifying our program in place*.
    This lets us make absolutely any codebase transformation while
    keeping the codebase compiling at all times. Here’s a procedure,
    it’s quite simple […]

    <URL:https://pchiusano.github.io/2015-04-23/unison-update7.html#refactoring-lessons>

The technique is not presented as flawless, and interesting trade-offs
are discussed. Quite an interesting article.

-- 
 \       “Science and religion are incompatible in the same sense that |
  `\       the serious pursuit of knowledge of reality is incompatible |
_o__)                       with bullshit.” —Paul Z. Myers, 2010-03-14 |
Ben Finney

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importing: what does "from" do? "Charles T. Smith" <cts.private.yahoo@gmail.com> - 2016-01-21 14:20 +0000
  Re: importing: what does "from" do? Ian Kelly <ian.g.kelly@gmail.com> - 2016-01-21 07:52 -0700
    Re: importing: what does "from" do? "Charles T. Smith" <cts.private.yahoo@gmail.com> - 2016-01-21 15:12 +0000
      Re: importing: what does "from" do? Ian Kelly <ian.g.kelly@gmail.com> - 2016-01-21 08:59 -0700
        Re: importing: what does "from" do? "Charles T. Smith" <cts.private.yahoo@gmail.com> - 2016-01-21 16:30 +0000
          Re: importing: what does "from" do? "Charles T. Smith" <cts.private.yahoo@gmail.com> - 2016-01-21 16:41 +0000
      Re: importing: what does "from" do? Steven D'Aprano <steve@pearwood.info> - 2016-01-22 03:22 +1100
  Re: importing: what does "from" do? John Gordon <gordon@panix.com> - 2016-01-21 15:31 +0000
    Re: importing: what does "from" do? "Charles T. Smith" <cts.private.yahoo@gmail.com> - 2016-01-21 15:37 +0000
      Re: importing: what does "from" do? John Gordon <gordon@panix.com> - 2016-01-21 15:44 +0000
        Re: importing: what does "from" do? "Charles T. Smith" <cts.private.yahoo@gmail.com> - 2016-01-21 15:46 +0000
          Re: importing: what does "from" do? John Gordon <gordon@panix.com> - 2016-01-21 15:59 +0000
        Re: importing: what does "from" do? "Charles T. Smith" <cts.private.yahoo@gmail.com> - 2016-01-21 15:53 +0000
          Re: importing: what does "from" do? Steven D'Aprano <steve@pearwood.info> - 2016-01-22 03:28 +1100
  Re: importing: what does "from" do? Rustom Mody <rustompmody@gmail.com> - 2016-01-21 23:03 -0800
    Refactoring in a large code base (was: importing: what does "from" do?) Ben Finney <ben+python@benfinney.id.au> - 2016-01-22 18:54 +1100
      Re: Refactoring in a large code base Marko Rauhamaa <marko@pacujo.net> - 2016-01-22 10:29 +0200
        Re: Refactoring in a large code base Rustom Mody <rustompmody@gmail.com> - 2016-01-22 01:21 -0800
          Re: Refactoring in a large code base Marko Rauhamaa <marko@pacujo.net> - 2016-01-22 12:19 +0200
            Re: Refactoring in a large code base Chris Angelico <rosuav@gmail.com> - 2016-01-22 22:19 +1100
              Re: Refactoring in a large code base Marko Rauhamaa <marko@pacujo.net> - 2016-01-22 13:54 +0200
                Re: Refactoring in a large code base Chris Angelico <rosuav@gmail.com> - 2016-01-22 23:28 +1100
                Re: Refactoring in a large code base Marko Rauhamaa <marko@pacujo.net> - 2016-01-22 15:00 +0200
                Re: Refactoring in a large code base Chris Angelico <rosuav@gmail.com> - 2016-01-23 00:26 +1100
                Re: Refactoring in a large code base Marko Rauhamaa <marko@pacujo.net> - 2016-01-22 15:48 +0200
                Re: Refactoring in a large code base Chris Angelico <rosuav@gmail.com> - 2016-01-23 01:09 +1100
              Re: Refactoring in a large code base Rustom Mody <rustompmody@gmail.com> - 2016-01-22 04:04 -0800
                Re: Refactoring in a large code base Marko Rauhamaa <marko@pacujo.net> - 2016-01-22 14:21 +0200
                Re: Refactoring in a large code base Thomas Mellman <tmellman@web.de> - 2016-01-22 12:27 +0000
                Re: Refactoring in a large code base Chris Angelico <rosuav@gmail.com> - 2016-01-22 23:34 +1100
                Re: Refactoring in a large code base Rustom Mody <rustompmody@gmail.com> - 2016-01-22 05:30 -0800
                Re: Refactoring in a large code base Marko Rauhamaa <marko@pacujo.net> - 2016-01-22 15:43 +0200
                Re: Refactoring in a large code base Rustom Mody <rustompmody@gmail.com> - 2016-01-22 05:58 -0800
                Re: Refactoring in a large code base Chris Angelico <rosuav@gmail.com> - 2016-01-23 01:08 +1100
            Re: Refactoring in a large code base "Charles T. Smith" <cts.private.yahoo@gmail.com> - 2016-01-22 11:45 +0000

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