A Code Review Review

Or: How Grown-ups Can Work Together Like Professionals to Build Software That Isn't Literally the Worst

I'm excited...

... so excited

... possibly too excited

... because reviews are my jam!

I know what you're thinking...

Really.

Here's why...

I hate being interrupted.

Like... I really fucking hate it

so much.

Interruptions

Production Bugs
Bullshit legacy code
Surprise Requirements
Manual regression testing

These are literally the worst.

They make engineers want to quit.

They are mostly preventable.

Better Peer Review

Success

A review is successful when everyone understands the motivation for the changes and can justify the approach.

Rules
Preparation
Feedback

1. Explain Everything

Get everything out of your head and out there for others to read. Often knowing someone's thought process is just important as their conclusions. Show your work.

2. Submitters determine the scope

It's up to the submitter to define what sort of feedback she is looking for and what the goal of the review is.

3. Reviewers determine the format

While it helps to agree upon how the feedback is formatted, it is ultimately up to the reviewers to decide how they provide their feedback.

4. Research > Ask > Assume

You will have questions. Try to find your own answers before peppering others with questions. Avoid assumptions at all costs.

Rules of Review

Explain Everything
Submitter decides the scope
Reviewer decides the format
Research > Ask > Assume

Preparation

Submitters

Clean up your changes
Review the changes yourself
Set the goal of the review
Provide a complete description of the problem
Provide clear criteria for acceptance
Check if reviewers have the resources they need

Reviewers

Only review "clean" changes
Demand a full description of the problem
Demand clear acceptance criteria
Delegate if you can't provide the right feedback (e.g. not enough time or expertise)

Feedback

Format

Viewable alongside the changes
Stored for reference and posterity
Supports a conversation with several people at once
Allow for asynchronous listening

Basically, just use pull-requests