What I was saying that choice of identifier of the variables/function does not matter for the functionality, as long as they all refer consistently to the same

What I was saying that choice of identifier of the variables/function does not matter for the functionality, as long as they all refer consistently to the same thing. Take code obfuscated by replacing variable names, for instance. People don't argue we should run the code through such obfuscator out of worry that the identifiers can change meaning through code changes. > If we could make outdated comments produce compilation errors, we would live in a wonderful world It is impossible. The whole point of having comments (and also identifiers) is to tie the code to things that are not formally described. If we would formally describe them, they would become the code. You could, at best, mark identifiers in comments (and what their refer to), and then you could use this to hint at comments that need to be updated (as somebody else mentioned). But it will never be a perfect process, because there will always be a boundary between formal and informal.