Source Code Browsing Tools?

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 Documentation is often missing or quite outdated, and the only way to see how the program works is to try to understand the source code.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?

Comments

Nothing Can Beat a Good Editor

[justanyone]

Nothing Can Beat a Good Editor

As much as we might like to use some special purpose tool for this purpose, most of the time that I'm looking at code I'm not entirely sure if I'm going to be editing it or just peeking. Thus, it's silly to be in one program when I need another. And, the added "system weight" of running a "heavy" editor vs. /bin/less or vi or emacs is silly, when I don't want to remember all their key combinations for moving around the file - top, bottom, page up pagedown, etc.

Syntax highlighting is THERE in an editor, and I don't have to restart if I change my mind about changing the file.

http://ultraedit/com/ is a GREAT editor for Windows, or Jedit or Eclipse for Win or unix.

My choice

[idontgno]

Which tools do you prefer to use for browsing and studying source code?

14-inch greenbar, preferably printing on a color-capable impact printer.

Wide continuous paper, plus a large work surface, means I can stretch a module out and mark it up with highlighters and scribble notes. A straightedge and some detective work means I can verify "indentation" levels (code nesting).

Of course, run a source code beautifier over it first.

Why, yes, I am old; how did you guess?