We would like to share some of the experiences we’ve had over the past 15 years working on critical software with a complex legacy component. It dates back to the 1980s and has evolved into a powerful system packed with domain knowledge and smart algorithms. Its “killer feature” is its ability to handle complex geometries. Over the years, the program has more than proven its value.
However, systems with such a long history are rarely simple
The software initially consisted almost entirely of macedonia phone number list code, with no test suite. As a result, no one dared to modify the code. To break this cycle, we didn’t opt for a radical restart, but chose a step-by-step approach.
Be Humble
When we started, the code had a reputation for being inaccessible to new team members, largely written in old Fortran dialects with some C. It was complex and clearly rooted in 1980s paradigms. Yet we quickly learned that first impressions can be misleading. What seems are you ready to apply legal marketing? is often well thought out—if you take the time to understand it.
Respecting the work of our predecessors was crucial. Only by genuinely trying to understand their choices could we see the value and potential of the system. That sometimes also meant acknowledging that later additions had made the original design less clear.
Changing Norms, Enduring Value
The tools and methods we use to develop software are agb directory evolving. —something modern compilers now handle automatically. We replaced this component step-by-step with a more standard approach. We did this systematically, in such a way that each change could be made incrementally while everything continued to work.
We also modernized the system in other ways, switching to Fortran-90 modules and introducing more compiler checks. Entire sections of code could be replaced with standard functions. This also helped when onboarding new developers, who were more willing to stay involved with the project.