Starting a code study group

We are starting a new code study group at work. Here is the email that I sent to the group to kick it off:

Starting a code study group

What is it?
A code study group is a bunch of people that choose an open source project or library and read it like a book.

As they go through it, they take notes; identify patterns, critique techniques and post a report.

They look at code with a critical eye. Various style of code will amaze them, amuse them and challenge them. They learn new paradigms that completely changes the way they approach problems.

They study the work of masters to improve their skills.

They meet twice a month and nominate 2 to 200 lines of code to study.

Why study code?

• To sharpen the saw
• To use existing code to reflect on our own capabilities
• To understand new code quickly
• To identify code patterns quickly

You can even learn from bad code.

This is not something new. Musician, painters, poets get together to study the work of masters. They learn their work and quiz each other.

Since we are heavy on the java side, I created an online survey with 4 open source libraries that could be interesting to study:

• Mockito
• FitNesse
• Spring
• Jakarta Commons

I can’t wait to see what are the results of the survey. I am going to keep it open until Monday.