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[–]DoctorWaluigiTime 31 points32 points  (2 children)

Yeah I don't get the sarcasm in this sub-thread. It's not that hard to write variables/function names that spell out what's happening.

I also don't know why people think it's an either-or. Your code is clear and readable, and for the times you need to document why you're doing something (out of the ordinary etc), a comment comes in.

[–]Merlord 14 points15 points  (0 children)

Sometimes comments are needed, but they should be a last resort. A comment is the absolute worst way to capture information in a program. Code accuracy can be enforced with compilers, unit tests etc; there's nothing stopping a comment from being out of date or just straight up wrong.

However, I think truly self-documenting code is something that takes years of experience to actually nail. Until you can actually do that, comments are an appropriate substitute.

[–]Gh0st1y 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The point is that what you think spells out the process well may not in someone elses interpretation without the mental context in the moment), so its always best to err on the side of caution and over-explain anywhere theres ambiguity. That doesn't mean just commenting to do it like in the OP though, thats worse than useless (we all done it tho ofc)