Taking over a project - What should I ask the previous programmer? [closed]

Answer 1

Before you look at the code:

Clear the objs and the exes, and let him/her rebuild the thing. Watch for any manual interaction (does it build via "make" alone or is there some fiddling involved).

Better yet: give him/her a naked (just bought) machine, let him/her demonstrate a checkout and rebuild. Then see how the app is started and comes up (any secret options to input?).

Then: in a pair programming session, add one or two features to the system and see where and how these are implemented.

The above may sound stupid, but I have seen projects where building alone was a nightmare, and a lot of knowledge was in the brain of the developer only. Not having a trusted build environment and having to figure out how to rebuild is a nighmare.

Answer 2

Ask: a) what don't you want me to ask you about this system? b) what will you be most happy about when you are no longer working on this project? c) What are the parts of the system that are too complex to be documented?

Answer 3

The first question I usually ask when taking over a project is how to get it out of source control (basically, "Where is it?"). Other than that, I think you've hit all the high points.

IDE setup, unit tests, deployment mechanism

are probably the most important things you can ask about.

When asking what websites influenced the one you're taking over, make sure you get a list of links. I've found that a lot of developers keep bookmarks to sites they've sampled from. Make sure you get those.

Answer 4

Who are your expert users - whose opinion should I seek or trust?

Who are your dangerous non-expert users - who should I listen to and then actively ignore?

Answer 5

His phone.

Answer 6

Carefully review the application and try to figure it out first. Then go into your meeting with questions, and most importantly, context.