Ask HN: How Do You Navigate Code? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: How Do You Navigate Code?

#21

Post by nont » Tue, Aug 23, 2022, 9:59 PM UTC

stratosmacker wrote: post #14

nameless912 wrote: post #8

NeoVim + language servers + global search with rg + a bunch of keyboard shortcuts: - gd = go to definition - gr = open a hovering window filled with references to symbol This is enough to get through every codebase I've yet encountered (Go, Typescript, Python, Java, C++). I also like to use and in vim which allows you to jump between the most recently viewed locations. For keeping context, I just write everything dow…

Are those keyboard shortcuts part of the LSP server?

Nope, you have to map them but they are very easy to do. You can use the suggested keymaps from nvim-lsp GitHub too (still need to copy pasta).

Re: Ask HN: How Do You Navigate Code?

#22

Post by aprdm » Tue, Aug 23, 2022, 10:12 PM UTC

grep or vscode search / definitions.

Take some rough notes on a google doc / gedit so that I don't forget paths that I've explored previously

Re: Ask HN: How Do You Navigate Code?

#23

Post by kejaed » Tue, Aug 23, 2022, 11:26 PM UTC

I’ll follow a lot of the vscode tips in this thread plus a helping of running Doxygen on the project. Even without the specific Doxygen markup in the headers, running Doxygen can help with the call graphs and object hierarchies with a browsable interface.

Re: Ask HN: How Do You Navigate Code?

#24

Post by dswilkerson » Wed, Aug 24, 2022, 12:00 AM UTC

step through it in a debugger;

run strace or ltrace on it;

grep: works better with editor assistance, such as emacs M-x grep;

write documentation for it;

factor out parts of it;

Re: Ask HN: How Do You Navigate Code?

#25

Post by nameless912 » Wed, Aug 24, 2022, 12:04 AM UTC

stratosmacker wrote: post #14

nameless912 wrote: post #8

NeoVim + language servers + global search with rg + a bunch of keyboard shortcuts: - gd = go to definition - gr = open a hovering window filled with references to symbol This is enough to get through every codebase I've yet encountered (Go, Typescript, Python, Java, C++). I also like to use and in vim which allows you to jump between the most recently viewed locations. For keeping context, I just write everything dow…

Are those keyboard shortcuts part of the LSP server?

No, but defining one is as easy as one magic incantation in your .vimrc:

  nnore gd :LspGoToDefinition

...or something like that. I haven't touched the config in a few months.

Re: Ask HN: How Do You Navigate Code?

#26

Post by i_have_an_idea » Wed, Aug 24, 2022, 12:56 AM UTC

grep -ri and then vim the interesting files. that's mostly web dev and scripting languages.

In the old days when I did more Java dev, I used Eclipse to view where things are defined and find usages.

Re: Ask HN: How Do You Navigate Code?

#27

Post by caeril » Wed, Aug 24, 2022, 1:55 AM UTC

dschuessler wrote: post #3

I use VSCode and mostly navigate via: F12: Go to definition Shift+F12: Go to usages Ctrl+-: Go back Ctrl+Shift+-: Go forward Once you get used to it, it's as easy as browsing the web. Since I started using VSCode I did not have to work with codebases that were complex enough to make these features valuable but some VSCode language extensions support tree views of call hierarchies and type hierarchies. Here's the docu…

Ctrl+- is reduce font size Ctrl+Shift+- is a no-op

What version of VScode are you using?

Re: Ask HN: How Do You Navigate Code?

#28

Post by factorialboy » Wed, Aug 24, 2022, 5:41 AM UTC

Larger the code base, more likely I am to bookmark files and folders.

Otherwise, searches for file names and contextual links, usages etc.

Re: Ask HN: How Do You Navigate Code?

#29

Post by fifteenth » Wed, Aug 24, 2022, 5:50 AM UTC

A good book on this topic is "Code Reading", by Diomidis Spinellis (2003)

Re: Ask HN: How Do You Navigate Code?

#30

Post by rahimnathwani » Wed, Aug 24, 2022, 6:26 AM UTC

caeril wrote: post #27

dschuessler wrote: post #3

I use VSCode and mostly navigate via: F12: Go to definition Shift+F12: Go to usages Ctrl+-: Go back Ctrl+Shift+-: Go forward Once you get used to it, it's as easy as browsing the web. Since I started using VSCode I did not have to work with codebases that were complex enough to make these features valuable but some VSCode language extensions support tree views of call hierarchies and type hierarchies. Here's the docu…

Ctrl+- is reduce font size Ctrl+Shift+- is a no-op What version of VScode are you using?

Ctrl+Alt+-

I guess Ctrl+Shift+- is a no op if you haven't first gone back.