I will have to refactor ! And now ? Refactoring Techniques in Java

Is your Java code sending you signals? Learn to spot the 'code smells' that mean it's time to refactor.

#1about 2 minutes

What is refactoring and why is it important

Refactoring improves software design and makes code easier to understand without changing its external behavior.

#2about 6 minutes

Identifying the right moments to refactor code

Refactoring can be done preparatorily, for understanding, to remove dead code, as a long-term project, or ideally during code reviews.

#3about 2 minutes

Understanding the disadvantages of refactoring

While beneficial, refactoring can increase delivery time, cause merge conflicts, and require tests to be rewritten.

#4about 2 minutes

Recognizing common code smells in your codebase

Code smells like duplication, long methods, confusing names, and outdated comments indicate underlying problems that refactoring can fix.

#5about 3 minutes

Using extract function and extract variable techniques

Improve readability by grouping code into a new function or simplifying complex expressions by storing them in a descriptive variable.

#6about 3 minutes

Encapsulating variables and introducing parameter objects

Control data access by making variables private with getters/setters and simplify method signatures by grouping related parameters into a single object.

#7about 3 minutes

Breaking down complex methods with split phase

Decompose a method that performs multiple distinct tasks into separate, more focused methods to improve clarity and maintainability.

#8about 4 minutes

Simplifying class interactions and responsibilities

Refactor large classes by using extract class, remove unnecessary intermediaries with remove middle man, and move functions to more appropriate classes.

#9about 4 minutes

Cleaning up code with various refactoring techniques

Improve the codebase by removing unused code, changing value objects to references for shared identity, and decomposing complex conditional logic.

#10about 5 minutes

Improving object creation and class hierarchies

Replace simple constructors with flexible factory methods, move common methods to a superclass with pull up method, and simplify hierarchies by collapsing unnecessary layers.

#11about 2 minutes

Conclusion and key takeaways on refactoring

Refactoring techniques should be combined and used alongside principles like SOLID to solve specific problems and improve overall code quality.

#12about 6 minutes

Q&A: Prioritizing refactoring and specific techniques

The speaker answers questions on how to prioritize refactoring tasks, the benefits of the split phase technique, and when to use change value to reference.