4 ms·

We could have the best of both worlds if comments could be easily hidden, or better yet, just additional meta-data on rich text code. But nope, we can't get awa

We could have the best of both worlds if comments could be easily hidden, or better yet, just additional meta-data on rich text code. But nope, we can't get away from ascii.

readthenotes1 2y ago
Trouble with comments is that they drift from the code over time because most people do not update the comments - - based upon my surveying production code bases. If they are hidden, it will drift even quicker and become even more useless faster
- convolvatron 2y ago
  i think in sean's proposed world we'd have metadata about that too! the comment in the context it was written in would be available, as well as all of the surrounding changes that potentially invalidate it. as well as potentially a whole discussion thread about what they meant when they wrote it, and suggestions about how to change it.
- seanmcdirmid 2y ago
  ...and the main reason people don't like comments is because they clutter up the code that gives them the truth of the matter. But yes, if they aren't in your face forcing you to look at them rather than the code, then they are slightly more likely to not be ignored when the code is changed. It would be nice if they could be like footnotes, or boxed out-takes, that could be pushed to side notes. We have had the typography, even if it was just markdown with a rendered code reading mode.
- shiroiushi 2y ago
  This is caused by poor or nonexistent code review practices. Reviewers should be ensuring that related comments are updated if code functionality is changed.
- yen223 2y ago
  I would urge developers to err on the side of too many comments over having too few comments, even if there's a risk of them going stale. I can deal with drifting comments, but I can't deal with missing comments.
  - wtetzner 2y ago
    I've found the opposite. Misleading comments can be far worse than no comments.
    - CRConrad 2y ago
      Date and sign comments. /* Helps determine staleness -- conrach 2024-09-12 */
kmoser 2y ago
You just need a "hide/show comments" extension for your IDE. (I would argue that such a feature should already be built in.)
bccdee 2y ago
You don't need to abandon plain text to hide comments. Comments are detectable with a regex; an extension to hide comments would be trivial to make in most editors. I think it's not a common feature because people generally just don't want it. Rich text code would create so many problems, too. You get locked into a special editor. You need special version control. Grepping becomes difficult. Diffs become difficult. You'd need a whole separate ecosystem, and for what? We have treesitter; we can already treat code like data.

We could have the best of both worlds if comments could be easily hidden, or better yet, just additional meta-data on rich text code. But nope, we can't get away from ascii.

readthenotes1 2y ago

Trouble with comments is that they drift from the code over time because most people do not update the comments - - based upon my surveying production code bases. If they are hidden, it will drift even quicker and become even more useless faster

convolvatron 2y ago
i think in sean's proposed world we'd have metadata about that too! the comment in the context it was written in would be available, as well as all of the surrounding changes that potentially invalidate it. as well as potentially a whole discussion thread about what they meant when they wrote it, and suggestions about how to change it.
seanmcdirmid 2y ago
...and the main reason people don't like comments is because they clutter up the code that gives them the truth of the matter. But yes, if they aren't in your face forcing you to look at them rather than the code, then they are slightly more likely to not be ignored when the code is changed. It would be nice if they could be like footnotes, or boxed out-takes, that could be pushed to side notes. We have had the typography, even if it was just markdown with a rendered code reading mode.
shiroiushi 2y ago
This is caused by poor or nonexistent code review practices. Reviewers should be ensuring that related comments are updated if code functionality is changed.
yen223 2y ago
I would urge developers to err on the side of too many comments over having too few comments, even if there's a risk of them going stale. I can deal with drifting comments, but I can't deal with missing comments.
- wtetzner 2y ago
  I've found the opposite. Misleading comments can be far worse than no comments.
  - CRConrad 2y ago
    Date and sign comments. /* Helps determine staleness -- conrach 2024-09-12 */

kmoser 2y ago

You just need a "hide/show comments" extension for your IDE. (I would argue that such a feature should already be built in.)

bccdee 2y ago

You don't need to abandon plain text to hide comments. Comments are detectable with a regex; an extension to hide comments would be trivial to make in most editors. I think it's not a common feature because people generally just don't want it. Rich text code would create so many problems, too. You get locked into a special editor. You need special version control. Grepping becomes difficult. Diffs become difficult. You'd need a whole separate ecosystem, and for what? We have treesitter; we can already treat code like data.