How do you read the source code of a project?

6 Answers

1. Read the source code, it has the advantage that it is always up to date.
2. Read the unit tests if they are available, they often show the intended use for a class, library or framework.
3. Refactor a part of the source code.
4. Debug the application, step through the program while using a debugger.

How do you read the source code of an application?

Frameworks like these are excellent sources to review since the code has high standards and is itself informed by the coding patterns used at Microsoft. I have personally learned enormously from reading and learning how the team structure extensible framework code.

Where can I read source code?

5 Answers. You can browse open source projects on repository sites like GitHub, Codeplex, Google Code, or BitBucket. You’ll find projects of different complexity levels, so you should be able to find something that both interests you and doesn’t go over your head too much at first.

How do you learn source code?

Find how they are related. Find test projects associated with it. Run, watch the result, step through the code in debugger and learn how it works….

1. Compile it.
2. Check the project structure (you can do it with the makefile of some sort).
3. Find test projects associated with it.

How do I get Started with open source programming?

I think it’s the reason most open source projects start anyway; to fill a need. Get the code building and running on your dev box. Figure out how the system is used and familiarize yourself with the libraries used. (For example, if you see code with calls to some OpenGL lib, familiarize yourself with that library) Read the system’s documentation.

What are the best books to learn programming from the code?

If you want books that I found useful for learning how to learn from the code, I would check out Diomidis Spinellis’s books Code Reading: The Open Source Perspective and Code Quality: The Open Source Perspective. For your specific question, I would start with Code Reading.

What tools do you use to debug your code?

Tools are very helpful: Doxygen + GraphViz, or a software such as “Understand”, call and caller graph in Visual studio, “Find all” and “find all references”, etc. I prefer to “step” through the code line by line in an IDE debugger.

What is the best way to test a code?

Skim through the code, looking for places where you think you know what is occuring. Read through those sections to see if your initial thought holds up, and then try modifying it to see if you can change it to do something else.