Free alternative (set of tehniques) to code maps

Hello,

This is my second message on this forum. I try to give context but I might give wrong information. Please correct me where I am wrong. I feel like I am still a beginner in some things.

I have seen this page about code maps (has screenshots) - a feature of Visual Studio Enterprise, and I wonder how can a programmer stay productive if they do not have code maps. For decades they have done this in extremely complex projects, and games can become very complex too.

How does a programmer remember all the relations between code components without visualising them so easily? What software do you use for this?

I find it hard to do this, although I succeed. I sometimes feel like it is too hard. But every small success strengthens my hope so I go forward.

Any piece of advice helps.

Thank you.

 

I find that for anything larger than a very time example project, any kind of tool to visualize the codebase becomes way too large and way too complex to understand. Code dependencies just doesn't map very well into a 2D space.

You can't remember all the relations between code components in a project with a real size. Hell, you can't remember all the components. Trying to keep that entire map in your head at any time is probably not going to be usefull. Instead, you should strive to keep the relations simple enough that you don't need to do that.

 

Thank you!