in reply to Analyzing large Perl code base.

Devel::Cover is a great tool for code exploration in combination with tests.

Write an end-to-end test for a bit of functionality. Run it under Devel::Cover. Look at the coverage report to see which chunk of your big ball of mud was related to the task. Refactor that chunk.

Repeat for the next bit of functionality.

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Re^2: Analyzing large Perl code base.
by spurperl (Priest) on Apr 15, 2005 at 15:03 UTC
    I don't think that this can be a reliable code-analysis tool in the general case. Too many programs contain complex initialization routines that use a lot of code and make coverage output not very useful.

    At times enabling or disabling something during a text will only differ in a small, barely invisible routine call when looking at the coverage logs.

    Using coverage for analysis has its merits, but it requires some a-priori acquintance with the code.

[reply]
      At times enabling or disabling something during a text will only differ in a small, barely invisible routine call when looking at the coverage logs.

      Luckily for us we have these wonderful computer thingies which are terribly good at looking through large chunks of data for differences :-)

[reply]

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