Editing Legacy system (section)

==Perspectives on legacy code==
Some in the [[software engineering]] prefer to describe "legacy code" without the connotation of being obsolete. Among the most prevalent neutral conceptions are ''source code inherited from someone else'' and ''source code inherited from an older version of the software''. Eli Lopian, CEO of Typemock, has defined it as "code that developers are afraid to change".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://dzone.com/articles/defining-legacy-code|title=Defining Legacy Code|last=Lopian|first=Eli|date=May 15, 2018|website=|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=June 10, 2019}}</ref> Michael Feathers<ref>Michael Feathers' ''Working Effectively with Legacy Code'' ({{ISBN|0-13-117705-2}})</ref> introduced a definition of ''legacy code'' as ''code without tests'', which reflects the perspective of legacy code being difficult to work with in part due to a lack of [[Automated testing|automated]] [[Regression testing|regression tests]]. He also defined [[characterization test]]s to start putting ''legacy code'' under test.

Ginny Hendry characterized creation of code as a `challenge` to current coders to create code that is "like other legacies in our lives—like the antiques, heirlooms, and stories that are cherished and lovingly passed down from one generation to the next. What if legacy code was something we took pride in?".<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://8thlight.com/blog/ginny-hendry/2014/07/11/take-pride-in-your-legacy-code.html |author=Ginny Hendry |title=Take Pride in Your Legacy (Code) |date=11 Jul 2014 |access-date=2021-10-07}}</ref>