Outline of Dave Cross’s Talk

Title: Measuring the Quality of Perl Code

Speaker: Dave Cross

Introduction

• Greetings and appreciation for attendance.
• Brief introduction to his current role and the purpose of the talk.

Section 1: Why Measure Code Quality?

• Importance of measurement for management and improvement.
• Quotation from Peter Drucker: “You can’t manage what you can’t measure.”
• Explanation of setting baselines and measuring improvements.

Section 2: What to Measure?

• Challenge of finding direct measures for code quality.
• Introduction to using proxy measures.
• Detailed discussion on proxies:
  • Test passes
  • Test coverage
  • Perl critic scores
  • Cyclomatic complexity

Section 3: How to Measure?

• Importance of regular, automated measurements.
• Overview of continuous integration tools:
  • Jenkins
  • Travis CI
  • Circle CI
• Setup and integration of Travis CI with GitHub.

Section 4: Summary and Displaying Success

• Ways to showcase improvements:
  • Using badges from Travis CI and Coveralls.
  • Presentation of test results and code quality metrics.
• Example of setting up and integrating various tools to automate the measurement process.

Conclusion

• Recap of the importance and methodology of measuring Perl code quality.
• Invitation to use his dashboard for tracking code quality metrics.

Question & Answer Session

• Discussion on the feasibility of historical data analysis.
• Clarifications on the use of Perl Critic configurations.

My Thoughts

Dave Cross provides a comprehensive guide to measuring and improving the quality of Perl code. His approach involves a blend of theory—emphasizing the need for measurable metrics in management—and practical guidance on using tools like Travis CI, Coveralls, and Perl Critic. The talk is structured to walk through the rationale, methodology, and tools necessary to implement a continuous quality improvement process, making it highly valuable for Perl developers looking to enhance their codebase systematically. The inclusion of real-world tools and examples of their setup makes the talk particularly actionable. Overall, it’s a well-rounded discussion that balances conceptual knowledge with actionable steps.