Peer Reviewing in Software Engineering: Striking the Balance ⚖️
Peer reviewing in software engineering is a comprehensive process that involves both technical and sociological aspects. As Robert L. Glass stated in his book Facts and Fallacies of Software Engineering, “Paying attention to only one is a recipe for disaster.” Therefore, the process requires developers to be rigorous and totally focused on what they are doing.
A code review is one of the most challenging tasks in the software development lifecycle due to the complexity involved in a software project. It is a process that requires developers to pay attention to both technical details and human factors, such as effective communication and collaboration. By incorporating peer reviews into the development process, developers can catch errors early and improve the quality of the final product.
During the review, the author of the code presents their work to one or more peers who then review it for errors, consistency, and adherence to coding standards. The reviewer provides feedback to the author, who can then make changes to their code to improve its quality. Peer reviewing is an effective way to ensure that the code is maintainable and meets the required standards.
Peer reviews provide an opportunity for knowledge sharing and collaboration among developers, which can help to improve the overall quality of the codebase. By working together, developers can catch issues early, reduce the cost and effort required to fix them later, and ensure that the final product is of high quality.
Source: Robert L. Glass, Facts and Fallacies of Software Engineering.