I’ve been writing code for 20 years.
During that time I’ve worked on hundreds of projects with dozens of teams. I found the most important quality of lasting code is readability.
When I first started writing code I just wrote code that worked. Who cares as long as it works? Years later, I went to great lengths to ensure my code adhered to all the best practices.
We know our code is too complex. This is easy to realize, but hard to avoid. We’re too quick to dismiss qualities like readability and accept complexity as necessary..
We need to get back to the basics of writing code for other humans. This is the goal of BaseCode.
“I’m quite strict about the code I write, but I’ve never been able to explain why this matters. BaseCode has helped me answer that question and given me even more practices to apply everyday!”
It’s a field guide, not a book.
BaseCode distills writing readable code into 10 practices and contains over 40 code samples.
These practices focus on:
- Writing code that prioritizes readability by humans, not a computer
- Avoiding code rot with analysis and automation
- Untangling nested code to improve visual honesty and reduce reader overhead
- Introducing objects to encapsulate complexity
- Refactoring long blocks of code by understanding reading levels
- Making naming things easy with context and time
- Using code as the primary signal, not comments
- Avoiding unnecessary code by using reasonable return values
- Delaying the need to remove duplication with the Rule of Three
- Improving code flow with symmetry
- Deferring design decisions to reduce anxiety when writing code
“I loved your Git course, you know how to simplify things and go the minimal way. In the coding world that means clean and lasting code. BaseCode is an absolute buy for me.”
This isn’t a book, it’s a field guide. BaseCode applies real-world practices to everyday code. There’s no fluff. No theory. I tackle common problems and use code to show solutions.
Each topic is neatly organized into a chapter. If you have a bunch of nested code, read Nested Code. If you want to break up long methods, jump to Big Blocks. You can read it cover to cover or jump around to the practices that interest you.
What’s available in each kit?
Field Guide
Every kit includes all 118 pages and 12 chapters of BaseCode.
- Introduction: Bootstrap
- Chapter 1: Formatting
- Chapter 2: Dead code
- Chapter 3: Nested code
- Chapter 4: Using objects
- Chapter 5: Big Blocks
- Chapter 6: Naming
- Chapter 7: Removing Comments
- Chapter 8: Reasonable Returns
- Chapter 9: Rule of Three
- Chapter 10: Symmetry
- Epilogue: Exit
Code Samples
With every kit you can download the complete code examples used in BaseCode. The folders are organized by chapter and files are named for each the example with before and after suffixes for comparison.
Audio Version
The Mid Kit and Full Kit will include with an audio version of BaseCode. This may seem strange given the code samples. However, the audio version isn’t a one-to-one reading. Instead, it allows me to deliver the practices with more depth and you to listen on the go.
Group Q&A Calls
The Mid Kit and Full Kit provide access to three group calls. These will be live-streams lasting about 20 minutes each where you can ask me any questions so you get the most out of BaseCode.
Bonus Videos
The Full Kit includes videos demonstrating the practices applied to even more real-world code samples. They will give you a better sense of how all the practices work together.
