Bad code smells

In computer programming, bad code smell is any symptom in the source code of a program that possibly indicates a deeper problem.

Often the deeper problem hinted by a code smell can be uncovered when the code is subjected to a short feedback cycle where it is refactored in small, controlled steps, and the resulting design is examined to see if there are any further code smells that indicate the need of more refactoring. From the point of view of a programmer charged with performing refactoring, code smells are heuristics to indicate when to refactor, and what specific refactoring techniques to use. Thus, a code smell is a driver for refactoring. The term appears to have been coined by Kent Beck and its usage increased after it was featured by Martin Fowler in Refactoring. Improving the Design of Existing Code. Determining what is and is not a code smell is often a subjective judgment, and will often vary by language, developer and development methodology.

FrontEndART SourceAudit product family tools are capable of detecting several types of bad smells for all the supported programming languages. The detailed list and the descriptions can be downloaded on the right download bar of the page