Refactoring: Improving the Design of Existing Code

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Summary: You wont need another book on refactoring if you have this
Review: Great book with very clear writing style, no fluff. Excellent structure and examples. This is classic.

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Summary: Should be required reading for every programming team
Review: This is one of the best programming books I have ever read, and provides techniques that I use in all my programming projects in any language.

It is essential to underscore the message that "Refactoring" is *NOT* rewriting. It is a deterministic, structured approach that can take unmaintainable code and gradually convert it into something that can be understood.

I've heard so many people say "I'll refactor this code" when they are actually going to redesign and rewrite it. Take their keyboard away until they understand the difference!

Too many projects get maintained to death, and then leave no other option than a rewrite. Refactoring techniques aim at the root of this collossal waste of resources, and establish a "clean code culture" that will protect the organization's investment. I strongly suggest that every team leader use this book as a guide to set up group exercises on the worst code they support. This will generate significant discussion on what quality really means, in a tangible, concrete way. Forget variable naming conventions, typographical standards, formatting guidelines! The fundamental structure of the code is the key.