Code Documentation & Self-Explanatory Code

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Core Principle

Write code that speaks for itself. Comment only when necessary to explain WHY, not WHAT.

Most code does not need comments. Well-written code with clear naming and structure is self-documenting.

The best comment is the one you don't need to write because the code is already obvious.

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The Commenting Philosophy

When to Comment

✅ DO comment when explaining:

• WHY something is done (business logic, design decisions)
• Complex algorithms and their reasoning
• Non-obvious trade-offs or constraints
• Workarounds for bugs or limitations
• API contracts and public interfaces
• Regex patterns and what they match
• Performance considerations or optimizations
• Constants and magic numbers
• Gotchas or surprising behaviors

❌ DON'T comment when:

• The code is obvious and self-explanatory
• The comment repeats the code (redundant)
• Better naming would eliminate the need
• The comment would become outdated quickly
• It's decorative or organizational noise
• It states what a standard language construct does

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Comment Anti-Patterns

❌ 1. Obvious Comments

BAD:

counter = 0  # Initialize counter to zero
counter += 1  # Increment counter by one
user_name = input("Enter name: ")  # Get user name from input

Better: No comment needed - the code is self-explanatory.

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❌ 2. Redundant Comments

BAD:

def get_user_name(user):
    return user.name  # Return the user's name

def calculate_total(items):
    # Loop through items and sum the prices
    total = 0
    for item in items:
        total += item.price
    return total

Better:

def get_user_name(user):
    return user.name

def calculate_total(items):
    return sum(item.price for item in items)

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❌ 3. Outdated Comments

BAD:

# Calculate tax at 5% rate
tax = price * 0.08  # Actually 8%, comment is wrong

# DEPRECATED: Use new_api_function() instead
def old_function():  # Still being used, comment is misleading
    pass

Better: Keep comments in sync with code, or remove them entirely.

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❌ 4. Noise Comments

BAD:

# Start of function
def calculate():
    # Declare variable
    result = 0
    # Return result
    return result
# End of function

Better: Remove all of these comments.

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❌ 5. Dead Code & Changelog Comments

BAD:

# Don't comment out code - use version control
# def old_function():
#     return "deprecated"

# Don't maintain history in comments
# Modified by John on 2023-01-15
# Fixed bug reported by Sarah on 2023-02-03

Better: Delete the code. Git has the history.

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Good Comment Examples

✅ Complex Business Logic

# Apply progressive tax brackets: 10% up to $10k, 20% above
# This matches IRS publication 501 for 2024
def calculate_progressive_tax(income):
    if income <= 10000:
        return income * 0.10
    else:
        return 1000 + (income - 10000) * 0.20

✅ Non-obvious Algorithms

# Using Floyd-Warshall for all-pairs shortest paths
# because we need distances between all nodes.
# Time: O(n³), Space: O(n²)
for k in range(vertices):
    for i in range(vertices):
        for j in range(vertices):
            dist[i][j] = min(dist[i][j], dist[i][k] + dist[k][j])

✅ Regex Patterns

# Match email format: username@domain.extension
# Allows letters, numbers, dots, hyphens in username
# Requires valid domain and 2+ char extension
email_pattern = r'^[a-zA-Z0-9._%+-]+@[a-zA-Z0-9.-]+\.[a-zA-Z]{2,}$'

✅ API Constraints or Gotchas

# GitHub API rate limit: 5000 requests/hour for authenticated users
# We implement exponential backoff to handle rate limiting
await rate_limiter.wait()
response = await fetch(github_api_url)

✅ Workarounds for Bugs

# HACK: Workaround for bug in library v2.1.0
# Remove after upgrading to v2.2.0
# See: https://github.com/library/issues/123
if library_version == "2.1.0":
    apply_workaround()

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Decision Framework

Before writing a comment, ask yourself:

Step 1: Is the code self-explanatory?

• If YES → No comment needed
• If NO → Continue to step 2

Step 2: Would a better variable/function name eliminate the need?

• If YES → Refactor the code instead
• If NO → Continue to step 3

Step 3: Does this explain WHY, not WHAT?

• If explaining WHAT → Refactor code to be clearer
• If explaining WHY → Good comment candidate

Step 4: Will this help future maintainers?

• If YES → Write the comment
• If NO → Skip it

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Special Cases for Comments

Public APIs and Docstrings

Python Docstrings

def calculate_compound_interest(
    principal: float,
    rate: float,
    time: int,
    compound_frequency: int = 1
) -> float:
    """
    Calculate compound interest using the standard formula.

    Args:
        principal: Initial amount invested
        rate: Annual interest rate as decimal (e.g., 0.05 for 5%)
        time: Time period in years
        compound_frequency: Times per year interest compounds (default: 1)

    Returns:
        Final amount after compound interest

    Raises:
        ValueError: If any parameter is negative

    Example:
        >>> calculate_compound_interest(1000, 0.05, 10)
        1628.89
    """
    if principal < 0 or rate < 0 or time < 0:
        raise ValueError("Parameters must be non-negative")

    # Compound interest formula: A = P(1 + r/n)^(nt)
    return principal * (1 + rate / compound_frequency) ** (compound_frequency * time)

JavaScript/TypeScript JSDoc

/**
 * Fetch user data from the API.
 *
 * @param {string} userId - The unique user identifier
 * @param {Object} options - Configuration options
 * @param {boolean} options.includeProfile - Include profile data (default: true)
 * @param {number} options.timeout - Request timeout in ms (default: 5000)
 *
 * @returns {Promise<User>} User object with requested fields
 *
 * @throws {Error} If userId is invalid or request fails
 *
 * @example
 * const user = await fetchUser('123', { includeProfile: true });
 */
async function fetchUser(userId, options = {}) {
  // Implementation
}

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Constants and Configuration

# Based on network reliability studies (95th percentile)
MAX_RETRIES = 3

# AWS Lambda timeout is 15s, leaving 5s buffer for cleanup
API_TIMEOUT = 10000  # milliseconds

# Cache duration optimized for balance between freshness and load
# See: docs/performance-tuning.md
CACHE_TTL = 300  # 5 minutes

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Annotations for TODOs and Warnings

# TODO: Replace with proper authentication after security review
# Issue: #456
def temporary_auth(user):
    return True

# WARNING: This function modifies the original array instead of creating a copy
def sort_in_place(arr):
    arr.sort()
    return arr

# FIXME: Memory leak in production - investigate connection pooling
# Ticket: JIRA-789
def get_connection():
    return create_connection()

# PERF: Consider caching this result if called frequently in hot path
def expensive_calculation(data):
    return complex_algorithm(data)

# SECURITY: Validate input to prevent SQL injection before using in query
def build_query(user_input):
    sanitized = escape_sql(user_input)
    return f"SELECT * FROM users WHERE name = '{sanitized}'"

Common Annotation Keywords

• TODO: - Work that needs to be done
• FIXME: - Known bugs that need fixing
• HACK: - Temporary workarounds
• NOTE: - Important information or context
• WARNING: - Critical information about usage
• PERF: - Performance considerations
• SECURITY: - Security-related notes
• BUG: - Known bug documentation
• REFACTOR: - Code that needs refactoring
• DEPRECATED: - Soon-to-be-removed code

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Refactoring Over Commenting

Instead of Commenting Complex Code...

BAD: Complex code with comment

# Check if user is admin or has special permissions
if user.role == "admin" or (user.permissions and "special" in user.permissions):
    grant_access()

...Extract to Named Function

GOOD: Self-explanatory through naming

def user_has_admin_access(user):
    return user.role == "admin" or has_special_permission(user)

def has_special_permission(user):
    return user.permissions and "special" in user.permissions

if user_has_admin_access(user):
    grant_access()

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Language-Specific Examples

JavaScript

// Good: Explains WHY we debounce
// Debounce search to reduce API calls (500ms wait after last keystroke)
const debouncedSearch = debounce(searchAPI, 500);

// Bad: Obvious
let count = 0;  // Initialize count to zero
count++;  // Increment count

// Good: Explains algorithm choice
// Using Set for O(1) lookup instead of Array.includes() which is O(n)
const seen = new Set(ids);

Python

# Good: Explains the algorithm choice
# Using binary search because data is sorted and we need O(log n) performance
index = bisect.bisect_left(sorted_list, target)

# Bad: Redundant
def get_total(items):
    return sum(items)  # Return the sum of items

# Good: Explains why we're doing this
# Extract to separate function for type checking in mypy
def validate_user(user):
    if not user or not user.id:
        raise ValueError("Invalid user")
    return user

TypeScript

// Good: Explains the type assertion
// TypeScript can't infer this is never null after the check
const element = document.getElementById('app') as HTMLElement;

// Bad: Obvious
const sum = a + b;  // Add a and b

// Good: Explains non-obvious behavior
// spread operator creates shallow copy; use JSON for deep copy
const newConfig = { ...config };

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Comment Quality Checklist

Before committing, ensure your comments:

• Explain WHY, not WHAT
• Are grammatically correct and clear
• Will remain accurate as code evolves
• Add genuine value to code understanding
• Are placed appropriately (above the code they describe)
• Use proper spelling and professional language
• Follow team conventions for annotation keywords
• Could not be replaced by better naming or structure
• Are not obvious statements about language features
• Reference tickets/issues when applicable

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Summary

Priority order:

1. Clear code - Self-explanatory through naming and structure
2. Good comments - Explain WHY when necessary
3. Documentation - API docs, docstrings for public interfaces
4. No comments - Better than bad comments that lie or clutter

Remember: Comments are a failure to make the code self-explanatory. Use them sparingly and wisely.

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Key Takeaways

Goal	Approach
Reduce comments	Improve naming, extract functions, simplify logic
Improve clarity	Use self-explanatory code structure, clear variable names
Document APIs	Use docstrings/JSDoc for public interfaces
Explain WHY	Comment only business logic, algorithms, workarounds
Maintain accuracy	Update comments when code changes, or remove them