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Code Review Checklists

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Julia Damerow edited this page Feb 23, 2022 · 3 revisions

Editor Checks

  • Contribution and authorship: Is there a justification for who are the authors/contributors and why the submitter is the one requesting the review?
  • Description: Is there at least a basic documentation (e.g. README file, link to documentation, etc.)? And if so, is it easily findable?

Reviewer Checks

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This checklist has been adapted from the JOSS review checklist.

Code of Conduct

  • I confirm that I read and will adhere to the code of conduct. (Code of conduct still needs to be written.)

General Checks

  • License: Does the repository contain a plain-text LICENSE file with the contents of an OSI approved software license?
  • Contribution and authorship: Does the author/contributor list match the submitted justification?

Documentation

  • A statement of need: Do the authors clearly state what problems the software is designed to solve and who the target audience is?
  • Installation instructions: Is there a clearly-stated list of dependencies? Ideally these should be handled with an automated package management solution.
  • Example usage and data: Do the authors include examples of how to use the software (ideally to solve real-world analysis problems). Do the authors include example data to be used to test the software?
  • Functionality documentation: Is the core functionality of the software documented to a satisfactory level (e.g., API method documentation)?

Functionality

  • Installation: Does installation proceed as outlined in the documentation?
  • Functionality: Have the functional claims of the software been confirmed?
  • Performance: If there are any performance claims of the software, have they been confirmed? (If there are no claims, please check off this item.)

Nice to Have

  • Automated tests: Are there automated tests or manual steps described so that the functionality of the software can be verified?
  • Community guidelines: Are there clear guidelines for third parties wishing to 1) Contribute to the software 2) Report issues or problems with the software 3) Seek support?
  • Github citation file: Is there a GitHub citation file?

The Code

  • Examine the code
    • Is the code readable to a human?
    • Are variables and method names clear?
    • Is there sufficient documentation for someone to come back 6 months later (or someone new) to understand what the code is doing?
  • Examine the algorithms in detail
    • Are there any hidden assumptions, not specified, that could cause problems?
    • Are there edge cases that may not work?
    • What happens with bad or missing data?
    • Does the algorithm do what it is supposed to? – Use stepwise abstraction

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