Oracle PL/SQL Best Practices

Name

DEV-03: Walk through each other’s code.

Synopsis

Software is written to be executed by a machine. These machines are very, very fast, but they aren’t terribly smart. They simply do what they are told, following the instructions of the software we write, as well as the many other layers of software that control the CPU, storage, memory, etc.

It is extremely important, therefore, that we make sure the code we write does the right thing. Our computers can’t tell us if we missed the mark (“garbage in, garbage out” or, unfortunately, “garbage in, gospel out”). The usual way we validate code is by running that code and checking the outcomes (well, actually, in most cases we have our users run the code and let us know about failures). Such tests are, of course, crucial and must be made. But they aren’t enough.

It is certainly possible that our tests aren’t comprehensive and leave errors undetected. It is also conceivable that the way in which our code was written produces the correct results in very undesirable ways. For instance, the code might work “by accident” (two errors cancel themselves out).

A crucial complement to formal testing of code is a formalized process of code review or walk-through. Code review involves having other developers actually read and review your source code. This review process can take many different forms, including:

• The buddy system: Each programmer is assigned another programmer to be ready at any time to look at his buddy’s code and to offer feedback. ...