How to read code

Dear new developer,

Reading code is much more common than writing code. Some might even say, “don’t trust any documentation, read the code,” though I consider that to be a pretty radical position.

But how can you effectively read the code. This post from selftaughtcoders.com gives a good explanation:

Find one thing you know the code does, and trace those actions backward, starting at the end.

…

Rinse and repeat.

…

It’s a wonderfully self-perpetuating cycle: you read more code; you gain the ability to understand it quicker and more effectively; so you are able to consume even more code; and so on.

And it doesn’t stop there: you’ll also see huge positive gains in your own coding.

I know nothing about his courses, but his insight into reading code to build intuition about programming and development in general is spot on. I tend to do this through code reviews, reading blog posts and going to meetups rather than tracing code paths, but reading code can be a good way to level up. Github is your friend.

Sincerely,

Dan