VIRTUAL | Adam Tornhill: Code as a Crime Scene

In this masterclass you learn novel analysis techniques that support both technical and organizational decisions around your codebase. The techniques use data from the most underused informational source that we have in our industry: our version-control system. Combined with metaphors from forensic psychology you learn to analyze version-control data to:

•  Identify the code that’s most expensive to maintain amongst millions of lines of code.
• Detect architectural decay and learn to control it.
• Analyse different architectures such as layers and microservices.
• Measure how multiple developers influence code quality and what you can do about it.
• Uncover the social side of your codebase and learn to use the data to guide on- and off-boarding.

During the workshop, you get access to CodeScene – a behavioral code analysis tool that automates the analyses – which we use for the practical exercises. We also discuss open-source alternatives where suitable, and see how we can use Git itself for data mining. Participants are encouraged to take this opportunity to analyse their own codebase and get specific take-away information around their system.

Prerequisites
The masterclass is language-neutral. The target audience is architects, senior developers, and technical managers. While we won't write any code during the class, the participants need to be comfortable with reading code. Detailed preparations with installation instructions for the tools will be sent out in advance.

Style
Hands-on - in front of your laptop. The masterclass is based on the books Your Code As A Crime Scene (2015) and Software Design X-Rays (2018) by the instructor.

• The History of your Code will decide its Future
• Your Code as a Crime Scene
• Lisp for the Web
• Patterns in C

About the trainer
Adam Tornhill is a programmer who combines degrees in engineering and psychology. He's the founder of Empear where he designs tools for software analysis. He's also the author of Software Design X-Rays, the best-selling Your Code as a Crime Scene, Lisp for the Web, and Patterns in C. Adam's other interests include modern history, music, and martial arts.