Series

Code Smells

In this series, we will see several symptoms and situations that make us doubt the quality of our developments. We will present possible solutions. Most are just clues. They are no hard rules.

Articles in this series

Code Smell 108 - Float Assertions

Dec 3, 20211 min read 61 views

TL;DR: Don't compare floats Problems Wrong test results Fragile tests Fail fast principle violation Solutions Avoid floats unless you have REAL performance concerns Use arbitrary precision numbers If you need to compare floats compare with t...

Code Smell 108 - Float Assertions

Code Smell 107 - Variables Reuse

Dec 1, 20211 min read 54 views

TL;DR: Don't read and write the same variable for different purposes Problems Readability Hidden problems Solutions Don't reuse variables Extract Method to isolate scopes Context When programming a script it is common to reuse variables. Thi...

Code Smell 107 - Variables Reuse

Code Smell 106 - Production Dependent Code

Nov 27, 20212 min read 143 views

Don't add IFs checking for production environment. TL;DR: Avoid adding conditionals related to production Problems Fail fast principle violation Lack of testability Solutions If completely necessary, model environments and test ALL of them. ...

Code Smell 106 - Production Dependent Code

Code Smell 105 - Comedian Methods

Nov 23, 20212 min read 77 views

Use professional and meaningful names TL;DR: Don't be informal or offensive Problems Readability Unprofessional work Solutions Choose good and professional names. Context Our profession has a creative side. Sometimes we get bored and try to b...

Code Smell 105 - Comedian Methods

Code Smell 104 - Assert True

Nov 21, 20212 min read 94 views

Asserting against booleans makes error tracking more difficult. TL;DR: Don't assert true unless you are checking a boolean Problems Fail Fast Principle Solutions Check if the boolean condition can be rewritten better Favor assertEquals Contex...

Code Smell 104 - Assert True

Code Smell 103 - Double Encapsulation

Nov 19, 20212 min read 99 views

Calling our own accessor methods might seem a good encapsulation idea. But it is not. TL;DR: Don't use setters and getters, even for private use Problems Setters Getters Exposing private attributes Solutions Remove setters Remove getters Pr...

Code Smell 103 - Double Encapsulation