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+1. “Let’s distribute all our algorithms in tiny chunks everywhere” seems to be the goal of some code bases. It’s unnecessary, you can control data and algorith

+1. “Let’s distribute all our algorithms in tiny chunks everywhere” seems to be the goal of some code bases. It’s unnecessary, you can control data and algorithm differently in most cases.

taeric 5y ago
I cringe at how many code reviews are essentially, take this 40 line function that does things we don't need anywhere else, and split it into 5 other abstractions. I mean... the review isn't wrong. You can totally split the functionality in ways that are very logical. But... did it really make THIS program easier?
- pjmlp 5y ago
  The dashboards used for QA code complexity metrics to assess project delivery now look nicer.
- pkolaczk 5y ago
  It should make it definitely easier to read, if names of the extracted functions are good, signatures are simple and you can understand well what they do without looking at their implementations. The main point of abstraction is not reusability, but the ability to understand code without a need to read all of it. Therefore it doesn't really matter if these extracted pieces aren't used anywhere else. But after splitting, now someone has to read and understand only 5 lines instead of 40, which reduces the cognitive load.
  - taeric 5y ago
    I agree, to an extent. Just there is basically no world where splitting a forty line function into five files is less code. And sometimes, having less to hold in your head helps compartmentalize it. So you may make the specific function easier, at the expense of the entire project. :(
    - pkolaczk 5y ago
      Of course it is not less code, but that additional code is mostly declarative documentation in the form of function signatures. You'd have to hold it in your head anyways to understand the original code, but now it is stated explicitly. The alternative to provide that information in a single big code blob would have to be code comments. And there are chances you wouldn't have to keep the function implementaions in your head, if they were extracted reasonably. Do you need to keep the details of how `sort` is implemented to be able to understand what it does?

+1. “Let’s distribute all our algorithms in tiny chunks everywhere” seems to be the goal of some code bases. It’s unnecessary, you can control data and algorithm differently in most cases.

taeric 5y ago

I cringe at how many code reviews are essentially, take this 40 line function that does things we don't need anywhere else, and split it into 5 other abstractions. I mean... the review isn't wrong. You can totally split the functionality in ways that are very logical. But... did it really make THIS program easier?

pjmlp 5y ago
The dashboards used for QA code complexity metrics to assess project delivery now look nicer.
pkolaczk 5y ago
It should make it definitely easier to read, if names of the extracted functions are good, signatures are simple and you can understand well what they do without looking at their implementations. The main point of abstraction is not reusability, but the ability to understand code without a need to read all of it. Therefore it doesn't really matter if these extracted pieces aren't used anywhere else. But after splitting, now someone has to read and understand only 5 lines instead of 40, which reduces the cognitive load.
- taeric 5y ago
  I agree, to an extent. Just there is basically no world where splitting a forty line function into five files is less code. And sometimes, having less to hold in your head helps compartmentalize it. So you may make the specific function easier, at the expense of the entire project. :(
  - pkolaczk 5y ago
    Of course it is not less code, but that additional code is mostly declarative documentation in the form of function signatures. You'd have to hold it in your head anyways to understand the original code, but now it is stated explicitly. The alternative to provide that information in a single big code blob would have to be code comments. And there are chances you wouldn't have to keep the function implementaions in your head, if they were extracted reasonably. Do you need to keep the details of how `sort` is implemented to be able to understand what it does?