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<title>Avi's thoughts on good reviews</title>
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<a href="index.html">⬅ back to the index</a><br>
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<h1>Good Reviews</h1>

Reviews exist on a spectrum from low value to high value.

<h3>Low Value Reviews</h3>
A low value review takes on faith that the objectives and approach should not be improved. Without explanation and evidence, this is never a correct assumption.
<br><br>
A low value review stops after asking...
<ul>
<li>Can I understand this code?</li>
<li>Does this code look like it will work?</li>
</ul>
A low value reviewer says "This seems weird to me. The problem must be me."
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<h3>High Value Reviews</h3>
A high value review questions every aspect of a change, including why it's being done in the first place.
<br><br>
A high value review asks...
<ul>
<li>What high level goal is this change trying to accomplish?</li>
<li>Is the objective well-defined?</li>
<li>Is the objective actually good or is it mistaken?</li>
<li>At a conceptual level, is the general approach taken very good or can it be obviously improved?</li>
<li>Does the code implement the approach well or poorly? How might the code be made to feel more elegant and informative?</li>
<li>What circumstances will the new code NOT handle?</li>
</ul>
A high value reviewer says "This seems weird to me. The problem might not be me. I should try to find out."
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