Writing · Nº 041065 essays
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Ideas from inside the work. Explore technology, entrepreneurship, and the practice of building things that last.
12 essays found · Page 1 of 1
Clear filtersEngineeringCode Review Misses Architectural DecayCode review catches line-level bugs but misses architectural decay entirely. Learn why your repo rots one approved pull request at a time and how to catch it.EngineeringStatic Analysis vs Repo Intelligence: The GapStatic analysis finds bugs in files. Repo intelligence finds risk across the whole repo and its history. Learn the difference and why you need both.EngineeringWrite Characterization Tests Before You RefactorYou cannot safely refactor untested legacy code. Characterization tests capture what the code actually does so you can change it without breaking behavior.EngineeringHow to Estimate Refactor Effort Before You StartRefactor estimates are usually guesses. Learn how to estimate refactor effort from repo signals like coupling, churn, and test coverage instead of gut feel.EngineeringHow to Find the Bus Factor in Your CodebaseBus factor measures how much of your repo only one person understands. Learn to find knowledge concentration risk in code and spread it before it hurts.EngineeringHow to Find and Remove Dead Code SafelyDead code inflates your repo, hides risk, and slows everyone down. Learn how to find dead code with confidence and remove it without breaking production.EngineeringThe Coupling Metrics That Predict Real PainCoupling is the maintainability metric that best predicts where changes break things. Learn afferent and efferent coupling and how to read them in your repo.EngineeringWhen Not to Refactor Legacy CodeNot all legacy code should be touched. Learn when refactoring legacy code is a waste of budget and when leaving ugly, stable code alone is the right call.EngineeringGenerate Docs From Code With AI Without the RotAI can generate documentation fast, but generated docs rot the moment code changes. Here is how to generate docs from the source of truth so they stay honest.EngineeringHow to Measure Dependency Drift Before It BitesDependency drift is how far your packages have fallen behind current versions. Learn to measure library lag as a risk metric and decide what to update first.EngineeringThe Strangler Pattern for Legacy Code, Done RightHow to replace legacy code without a rewrite. The strangler pattern lets you route new work to new code and retire the old system piece by piece, safely.EngineeringChurn vs Complexity: Find Your Real HotspotsComplex code is only dangerous when it changes. Cross churn against complexity to find the hotspots in your repo that actually deserve a refactor first.