Bad Code Is Kudzu
This post vividly compares the insidious spread of bad code to the invasive plant kudzu, arguing that features, once implemented, become incredibly sticky and difficult to prune. It strikes a chord with developers who constantly battle codebase bloat and highlights the often-thankless, yet critical, task of code deletion. The author's practical example of removing an underused feature underscores the need for a deliberate strategy to prevent digital 'kudzu' from overwhelming projects.
The Lowdown
The article draws a compelling parallel between the invasive plant kudzu and the accumulation of bad or unused code in software projects. Just as kudzu, introduced to combat soil erosion, aggressively overtakes landscapes, code features, once added, tend to become entrenched and complicate codebases, often attracting further development on top of them.
- Kudzu, an East Asian import, is notorious for its rapid, aggressive growth, smothering other vegetation and structures, requiring a concerted, aggressive pruning strategy for removal.
- Similarly, app features, even simple ones, are difficult to remove due to accumulated dependencies and the effort involved in dismantling existing code.
- Code deletion is often a thankless task, rarely recognized in career advancement, leading to a bias towards adding new features over removing old ones.
- The author argues this issue is exacerbated in the 'new era' of easily generated code, risking an overwhelming deluge of 'generated kudzu slop' if not actively managed.
- A personal anecdote illustrates the point: the author added 'hashtag bubbles' to their blog using machine learning, but observed through analytics that users rarely engaged with them.
- Despite the initial effort to implement, the feature was eventually removed with a simple commit, demonstrating that removal can be as straightforward as creation if planned.
The core message is that developers must proactively plan for code removal, especially in an environment where adding new features is increasingly effortless, to prevent codebases from becoming unmanageable thickets of unused or legacy functionality.