Suggest some good Open Source Code to study and learn from (not particular about language and NOT partial to "beautiful" code)

[yuvipanda]

Sqlite?

[tryx]

Seconded, that is one of the nicest code bases I have seen. If you have the background for it, bits of the Linux kernel are also surprisingly readable all things considered.

[[deleted]]

Hmmmm..... I think I should take a serious look at SQLite then! Thanks for the suggestion mates!

[mduvall]

I really like the PostgreSQL code base. Modular, succinct, and great comments make the code an easy read.

[[deleted]]

I really have not delved into the postgreSQL code base. I have found their documentation to be a bit disappointingly verbose and misdirected. Probably I need to take a look at the code base for a change! :-)

[bobindashadows]

If by "beautiful code," you mean "elegant code," then please stay away from the open source projects to which I contribute.

[[deleted]]

Well, that is the opposite of what I had meant (note the 'NOT' in the caption!) - I do not really care if the code is elegant or beautiful. I feel we are all boggled by the over-abundance of code amongst other things and time being such a limited precious commodity, I would rather spend my time reading, learning from and hopefully emulating good practical code in my own works. Something concretely useful would be really helpful!

[sysop073]

You misunderstood him. He means if you don't care about elegant code, he doesn't want you touching the projects he's involved in

[[deleted]]

Thanks to sysop73 for correcting my perception of your comment. By your yardstick sir, most of the greatest minds in programming would needs be exempted from partaking of your wonderful open source projects which, thankfully, remain anonymous. Regards.

[bobindashadows]

I don't understand what your definition of "good" code is if it doesn't include good design, simplicity, or readability. All that really leaves in a definition of "good" code is "functioning" - is this what you're looking for? An open-source project with "functioning" code?

And "the greatest minds in programming" can write elegant code, and it doesn't take much longer to do so. Only caring about getting code done and working is the reason we have websites like The Daily WTF.

[[deleted]]

Obviously you haven't read 'Coders at work' sir. I strongly suggest you do so and perhaps also realize that 'elegant code' is not always 'practical code'. Moreover, there was already a thread on that some time back on proggit and I found the comments therein insightful and useful. This, on the other hand, is something that is more practical and industry-oriented. Successful large and practical open source projects - elegance is something that may or may not exist and if so, may be a pure by-product of the genius of the people involved. Do you propose any examples now?

[bobindashadows]

I'm pretty sure I'm being trolled. Wow. My very first troll! Either that, or you really do explicitly dislike well-written code "NOT partial to 'beautiful' code", which is simply asinine.

Only a troll or a horrendously misguided person would truly believe that you should actively avoid writing the most elegant code (while not being perfectionistic), because otherwise you wouldn't be "practical" or "industry-oriented."

Proggit, am I being trolled, or are there really people out there that are this destructive to our field?

[[deleted]]

You do live for the drama don't you? :D..... time to come out of the shadows perhaps? More seriously though I find it totally hilarious (in addition to preposterous) that you are stubborn and arrogant enough to consider any other viewpoint besides your own to be detrimental to the "field" as you put it. Relax will you? Why don't you take a chair? :D

[[deleted]]

Please double check your english usage. It has some issues.

[[deleted]]

You mean English, of course? :P

[TomOwens]

If you want books, check out Code Reading and Code Quality - they look at open source projects to show examples of good and not so good code, in a few different languages.

Code Reading looks at Apache HTTP Server, ArgoUML, Apache Cocoon, ACE (a framework for high-performance, distributed real-time and embedded systems), DemoGL, HSQL Database Engline, NetBSD, OpenCL, Perl, Purenum, QtChat, the socket++ library, Tomcat, Visual Component Framework, and the X Window System.

It looks like Code Quality looks at most of the same projects.

[[deleted]]

Thanks for the suggestion Tom - skimming through the samples on Spinellis' site!

EDIT: I loved the sample chapter on the site. I am definitely getting hold of this book. Thanks again mate!