Identifying Un-used functions and commands

[Richard Gaskin]

Quentin Long wrote:

 > Finding explicit function/command calls seems like it should be a
 > fairly straightforward task. However, the "do" keyword can also be
 > a source of function/command calls, which complicates matters a
 > wee bit. You'll also need to evaluate all the non-cleartext components
 > that can go into "do" statements—
 > do (VariableName)
 > do (the WhateverProp of ThisObject)
 > do (line 4 of fld "ThisField")
 > —etc etc etc.

There are many reasons to resort to "do" only after all other more 
with-the-grain approaches cannot be made to work.

That it eludes static code analysis is just one more.

If I get around to tidying up my old orphan-finder and adding it to 
other code base management tools in devolution, I wouldn't bother 
attempting to handle "do" cases.  Low ROI, and not handling them helps 
draw attention to the technical debt many uses of "do" accrue.

-- 
  Richard Gaskin
  Fourth World Systems
  Software Design and Development for the Desktop, Mobile, and the Web
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