Am I the only one who used to write everything in one giant file?

Honestly, when I first started learning Python about eight months ago, I wrote my entire first project, a simple text-based game, in a single script that was over 500 lines long. It was a mess of functions and variables all crammed together, and if I needed to change one thing, I'd break three others. I got so frustrated trying to find a bug that I almost quit. Then I watched a video from a guy named Corey Schafer where he talked about breaking code into modules. I tried it on my next project, making separate files for game logic, player data, and the main loop. Tbh, it was a bit confusing at first, but after a week it just clicked. Now I can't imagine going back to that old spaghetti code. Has anyone else made a switch like this and found a specific way to organize their files that really helped?

3 comments

3 Comments

paigep8529d ago

That "spaghetti code" line hits home. My first project was just a single file named "project_final_final_v2_real.py" that was basically a digital ransom note. I think the real turning point was when I tried to add a new feature and my own code stared back at me like a hostile stranger. Splitting things up felt like adult supervision finally showed up.

brookebaker29d ago

Oh man that naming convention is too real. I still find files like "test_new_idea_FINAL_revised.py" from six months ago that I'm scared to open. The worst is when you leave a comment for yourself that just says "what was I even trying to do here?" and future you has no clue either. Breaking it into modules is the only thing that saves you from your own past chaos.

david_jones3829d ago

My first boss called my single-file project a "digital hairball." He made me rewrite it into modules before he'd even look at the code. It was annoying then, but it taught me structure the hard way.