Steven Diamante - The Legacy Code Survival Guide: Add Features Without Fear

How do you feel when you need to add a new feature to a legacy system with no tests, confusing naming, and tight coupling? Nervous? Anxious? What if there was a way to make it safer to work with and even enjoyable?

The key is to make the code safer to work with by adding tests, improving names, and refactoring toward OO principles like encapsulation and abstraction. Through live coding examples, you’ll see how small, simple refactorings can make adding new features easier.

By the end of this session, you’ll be able to

- identify common Java code smells
- apply refactoring techniques to improve code design
- safely add new features to your codebases with confidence

Steven Diamante is a technical coach dedicated to helping software teams master technical excellence, reduce bugs, and build software they’re proud of. Through hands-on Samman Coaching, he teaches teams how to write high-quality, maintainable code using XP practices like TDD, refactoring, and collaborative programming. He helps teams build a culture of continuous learning and experimentation, making software development more rewarding, fun, and effective.

Outside of coaching, he enjoys playing guitar in his local church, reading a non-fiction book, or hanging out with his wife and two kids.

Topic: TBD
Zoom meeting opens around 9:30 AM PT
Zoom Presentation starts at 10:00 AM PT