Writing clean code in C# and .NET

Writing Clean Code in C# and .NET

About.ME
• Senior Consultant @CodeValue
• Developing software (Professionally) since 2002
• Writing clean code since 2009
• Blogger: http://blog.drorhelper.com

Let’s talk about software bugs

Bugs cost around $312 Billion Per Year

And it’s all a developer’s fault

The cost of fixing bugs
1 2 10
20
50
150
RQUIRMENTS DESIGN CODE DEV T ACC T OPERATION
[B. Boehm - ICSE 2006 Keynote Address]

High quality code is:
• Easy to read and understand
• Impossible to hide bugs
• Easy to extend
• Easy to change
• Has unit tests
Be a proud of your code

The cost of owning a mess
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Productivity
Productivity
[Robert Martin – “Clean Code”]

Quality == Agility
• Adapt to changes
• Don’t be held back by bugs
• Cannot be agile without high quality code

How a developer spends his time
60% - 80% time spent in understanding code
So make sure your code is readable
But what is a readable code?

“Always code as if the guy who ends up
maintaining your code will be a violent
psychopath who knows where you live”

Megamoth
Stands for MEGA MOnolithic meTHod.
Often contained inside a God Object, and
usually stretches over two screens in height.
Megamoths of greater size than 2k LOC have
been sighted. Beware of the MEGAMOTH!
http://blog.codinghorror.com/new-programming-jargon/

Write short methods – please!
• It’s easier to understand
• Performance won’t suffer
• Avoid mixing abstraction layers
• Enable re-use
• Also write small classes

How can we recognize bad code?
• You know it we you see it
• You feel it when you write it
• You get used to it after a while 
• known as Code Smells

Code Smells
• Duplicate code
• Long method
• Large class
• Too many parameters
• Feature envy
• Inappropriate intimacy
• Refused request
• Lazy class/Freeloader
• Contrived complexity
• Naming!
• Complex Conditionals
• And more…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Code_smell

Comments often are used as a deodorant
Refactoring, Martin Fowler

Comments are a dead giveaway
• If explains how things done means that the
developer felt bad about the code
• “Code title” – should be a method
• Commented Old code – SCM
Good comments exist in the wild – but rare

http://stackoverflow.com/questions/184618/what-is-the-best-comment-in-
source-code-you-have-ever-encountered
/// <summary>
/// Gets or sets the name of the first.
/// </summary>
/// <value>The name of the first.</value>
public string FirstName
}
get { return _firstName; }
set { _firstName = value; }
{
/** Logger */
private Logger logger = Logger.getLogger();
/// <summary>
/// The possible outcomes of an update
operation (save or delete)
/// </summary>
public enum UpdateResult
}
/// <summary>
/// Updated successfully
/// </summary>
Success = 0,
/// <summary>
/// Updated successfully
/// </summary>
Failed = 1
{
//private instance variable for storing age
public static int age;
// Always returns true.
public bool isAvailable()
}
return false;
{

Naming is important
d, days  daysSinceLastPayment
customerPo  customerPurchaseOrder
productIdString  productId
genymdhms  generationTimeStamp

Dead Code
• Code which is never run
• But still has maintenance costs
• Solution - delete

Undead Code
Dead code that you’re afraid to delete
- “I might need this…”
geek-and-poke.com/
// UNUSED
// Separate into p_slidoor.c?
#if 0 // ABANDONED TO THE MISTS OF TIME!!!
//
// EV_SlidingDoor : slide a door horizontally
// (animate midtexture, then set noblocking line)
//

Avoid duplicate code (DRY)
“Every piece of knowledge must have a
single, unambiguous, authoritative
representation within a system”
The Pragmatic Programmer: Dave Thomas, Andy Hunt

public bool HasGroup(List<Token> tokenList){
for(Token token : tokemList){
if(token.get_group() != null) {
return true;
{
{
return false;
{
public Group GetValidGroup(List<Customer> customers){
for(Customer customer : customers){
Group group = customer.get_group();
if(group != null) {
return group;
{
{
return null;
{

Good code start with good design
Bad DesignGood design
RigidLoosely coupled
FragileHighly cohesive
ImmobileEasily composable
ViscousContext independent
It’s all about dependencies
• In .NET Reference == dependency
• Change in dependency  change in code

This is not OOP!!!
public class Record_Base
{
public DateTime RecordDateTime
{
get { return _recordDateTime; }
set
{
if (this.GetType().Name == "Record_PartRegister")
_recordDateTime = value;
else
throw new Exception("Cannot call set on RecordDateTime for table " + this.GetType().Name);
}
}
}
http://thedailywtf.com/Articles/Making-Off-With-Your-Inheritance.aspx

Design stamina hypothesis
http://martinfowler.com/bliki/DesignStaminaHypothesis.html

Principles of Object Oriented Design
Single responsibility
Open/closed
Liskov substitution
Interface segregation
Dependency inversion
www.butunclebob.com/ArticleS.UncleBob.PrinciplesOfOod

Single responsibility
A class should have one, and only one,
reason to change.
http://www.amazon.com/Wenger- 16999-ssiwS-efinK-
B/pd/tnaiG001 DZTJRQ/

Naming as code smell
Having difficulties naming your class/method?
You might be violating SRP

public interface ITimerService
{
IDisposable SetTimout(long durationMilliSeconds, Action callback);
Task Delay(TimeSpan delay, CancellationToken token);
void KillLastSetTimer();
}
public interface IDispacherTimerService : ITimerService
{
long GetMilisecondsFromLastStart();
}
public interface IElapsedTimerService : ITimerService
{
void SetTimout(long durationMilliSeconds, Action<TimeSpan> callback);
}

Open closed principle
software entities should be
open for extension,
but
closed for modification

Writing clean code in C# and .NET

Liskov subtitution
objects in a program should
be replaceable with instances of their
subtypes
without altering the correctness of that
program

LSP smell - look for type checking
void ArrangeBirdInPattern(IBird aBird)
}
var aPenguin = aBird as Pinguin;
if (aPenguin != null)
}
ArrangeBirdOnGround(aPenguin);
{
else
}
ArrangeBirdInSky(aBird);
{
// What about Emu?
{

Interface segregation
Many client specific interfaces are better than
one general purpose interface.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cockpit

Dependency Inversion
Depend upon abstractions.
Do not depend upon concretions.

Your code will change!
• Requirements change
• Bugs are found
• New feature requests
 Your design will change

In the beginning…
Application was beautiful - then came change…
• Software Rot
– Duplication
– Excess coupling
– Quick fixes
– Hacks

public override void HandleActionRejected(User from, reason reason)
}
Logger.Info("HandleActionRejected - user:{0}", from.Id);
/*foreach (var user in UserRepository.GetAllUsers)
}
Client.SendInfo(user, from, reason);
{ */
//2.2
Events.Users.Value = new UserData
}
SessionId = CurrentSession.Id,
HaveIInitiated = true,
OtherUser = from,
StartCallStatus = Events.ConvertToCallStatus(answer)
{;
UserRepository.Remove(from, reason);
if(UserRepository.IsEmpty())
}
Exit();
{
{

Refactoring
“a disciplined technique for restructuring
an existing body of code, altering its
internal structure without changing its
external behavior”
- Martin Fowler
http://refactoring.com/catalog/

Refactoring with Visual Studio

Code reviews
Can catch up to 60% of defects
Effective code reviews are:
• Short – don’t waste time
• Constructive
• Avoid emotionally draining arguments
Everybody reviews and everybody is reviewed

No quality has very high cost
Never have time to do it,
but always have time to re-do it.
Explain why this feature takes so much time
“You rush a miracle man,
you get rotten miracles.”

Don’t expect your company to force you
Be a professional
Care about your code

Improve your code
• Start as soon as you can
• Don’t compromise
Schedule time for quality
–Improve existing code
–Make it work, then make it better
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Writing clean code in C# and .NET

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