Code Smell

The Code That Shall Not Be Named

Warning: Code Smell is a notorious contributor to codebase entropy. Prolonged exposure can lead to spontaneous combustion, spontaneous rewrites, and spontaneous reorganisations.

Code Smell is the result of poorly designed, poorly tested, and poorly documented code that has been left to rot in the depths of the codebase. It's like the digital equivalent of moldy bread in the pantry - it's not pretty, it's not safe, and it's definitely not worth eating.

Here are some symptoms of Code Smell:

• Code that's been copy-pasted from Stack Overflow without understanding
• Code that's been modified to "just work" without understanding the original intent
• Code that's been commented with TODOs and FIXMEs that are never fixed
• Code that's been written by someone who's been eating a lot of beans

What Can You Do?

Don't worry, Code Smell is not the end of the world. There are ways to combat it:

1. Refactor, refactor, refactor. Rip it out, and start fresh. (But be careful not to create Code Smell 2.0)

2. Write tests for it. Tests are like garlic - they keep the vampires of Code Smell at bay.

3. Document, document, document. Write down why the code is like this, and what you're going to do about it.

Learn more Code Smell remediation techniques