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Source Code Browsing Tools?

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the emacsen-are-right-out dept.

Marco Sanvido asks: "I often look at source code (especially C, but this question is valid for other languages as well) and I have a really hard time in understanding how it works. Documentation is often missing or quite outdated, and the only way to see how the program works is to try to understand the source code. Which tools do you prefer to use for browsing and studying source code? So far I have used LXR for Linux, Eclipse for java, and CScope, but I'm not sure that these tools are the best solution." It's tempting to flood this question with answers for your IDE, but the key thing here is _browsing_, not _development_. What decent, lightweight programs would work well as source code viewers?

10 of 165 comments (clear)

  1. The only option by Frogbert · · Score: 3, Funny

    Real programmers use "type".

    1. Re:The only option by Alfred,+Lord+Tennyso · · Score: 5, Funny

      Actually, real programmers use cat.

    2. Re:The only option by popeyethesailor · · Score: 4, Funny

      Um no. They may grep, sed, awk, diff, tr, tail,head or more; but they never cat.

    3. Re:The only option by Catastrophator · · Score: 3, Funny

      Bah! Real programmers program with the switches on the front panel! Damn whippersnappers... And get of my lawn!

    4. Re:The only option by shenanigans · · Score: 2, Funny

      Bah. Real programmers use hexdump.

    5. Re:The only option by Richard+Steiner · · Score: 2, Funny

      Real programmers don't work on toy platforms (like UNIX) at all. :-) We use tools like ED, DOWNDATER, IACULL, and LISTER to generate CCFs in a proper format which our compilers understand (not that "diff" crap), use SGSs written in SymStream to control our product compiles, read dumps in octal (hex is for long-haired bean-sprout-eating UNIX freaks and peecee weenies, and interactive debuggers are for slopeheads who lack the mental capacity to write real programs), and don't use formal change management. Real programmers can keep track of potential merge errors and fix them manually if one occurs at GEN time, and we drink Mountain Dew, not that hot smelly crap made from beans.

      --
      Mainframe/UNIX Bit Twiddler and long time Windows/Linux Hobbyist.
      The Theorem Theorem: If If, Then Then.
    6. Re:The only option by Bastian · · Score: 3, Funny

      And get of my lawn!

      Real programmers know that forgetting even a single byte in any stream of data can turn it into gibberish or worse.

    7. Re:The only option by Autonomous+Cow · · Score: 2, Funny

      Indeed. But a real UNIX hacker can unplug the monitor, cat the source files to /dev/dsp and listen for bugs in the system. And he knows from the tune whether its compiler errors or silly warnings designed for people who think lint-clean does not imply a wool suit.

      --
      The Autonomous Cow. Moo.
  2. Re:How dare you... by Per+Wigren · · Score: 2, Funny

    Hey, we weren't supposed to talk about IDEs!

    --
    My other account has a 3-digit UID.
  3. Universal advise by ceeam · · Score: 2, Funny

    Just rewrite it. Reading others' code is for wimps.