The relationship between source code, computers, and people is complex. Though most code exists to be run on a computer, its purpose is not limited to that. It is also intended to be read and understood. The complexity of modern software development stands in opposition to the effort to understand code: Software that cannot be understood cannot be easily maintained or improved, and many empirical studies indicate a correlation between a given codebase's complexity and its rate of defects.3 It's difficult to understand a codebase of any significant size, and programmers therefore need and deserve every useful tool and technique to help them understand complex codebases.
展开▼
