[Asterisk-Dev] Need help to get into the code

[Tilghman Lesher]

On Tuesday 17 May 2005 20:46, Johnathan Corgan wrote:
> Tilghman Lesher wrote:
> > Great!  So when can we expect your patch on the bugtracker?
>
> I think you missed his whole point.
>
> He was concerned that his own code he developed for a new channel
> had latent bugs because there was no way for him to validate his
> understanding of how the interface was supposed to work.  How can
> he divine the "thinking and intentions of the original developer"
> of the code?

He can't, but the original developer probably is Mark, who doesn't
have the time to go back to comment the code.

> Comments from someone who *thinks* they understand what was
> intended are inferior to comments by the *original developer* who
> actually knows about what he intended.
>
> If we are now in a position where future developers have to
> essentially reverse engineer existing code in order to be able to
> write new code, that ups the bar for the skills needed to extend
> and enhance Asterisk. Of course, there are skilled developers who
> work this way in their sleep.  But they are few and far between.

Given that he has just muddled his way through the code in order
to write a new channel driver, I can't imagine someone who could be
more qualified to comment the code on how to interface another new
channel driver.  And if he does get something wrong, then it's pretty
easy to make some modifications in the comments down the road.
But somebody has to make the original investment in time to get the
initial comments done.

-- 
Tilghman