in reply to Code Maintainability

Interesting discussion, but apart from (and above, really) the syntax (incl. comments) impact on semantics, I find that code design is of superior importance for maintainability; Consider design principles such as Separation of Concerns, Orthogonality, Extensibility, Testability (quote On-Writing-Maintainable-Code) : 

Can I find the code related to the problem or the requested change? Go
+od Naming, High Cohesion, Single Responsibility Principle, Separation
+ of Concerns

Can I understand the code? Good Naming, Composed Method, The Principle
+ of Least Surprise, Can You See The Flow of the Code?, Encapsulation 

Is it easy to change the code? Don't Repeat Yourself, Wormhole Anti-Pa
+ttern, Open Closed Principle 

Can I quickly verify my changes in isolation? Loose Coupling, High Coh
+esion, Testability 

Can I make the change with a low risk of breaking existing features? L
+oose Coupling, High Cohesion, Open Closed Principle, Testability

Will I know if and why something is broken? Fail Fast

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Best regards,
Allan Dystrup

In Section Meditations