Hello guys,
What process you guys follow when you join a new team/product or new job and start working on project there? There could be different answers :
I generally start debugging code , doing small changes.
May be there are some best ways that can be followed to get hands on with any new project.
Comments??
First I would try to use the software myself for some time to get accustomed to what it is doing and how it is doing it. Then I would proceed by looking at the general architecture of the software (using the UML docs if there are any), then try to learn more about the some detail questions I might get during that process by look at actual source code.
Once I feel I have a good overview of all this, I would proceed to whatever is on the project team's to-do list (bug fixes, new features, etc).
If I start on an existing project, I start with exploring the documentation. Unfortunately this is not often available, so I have to make it myself. This is not bad, because it gives you insight in the code and you get some documentation to start with.
The biggest problem is often to get the "why" of the code. Sometimes you see a piece of code, and at first you think that it can be easier, but there is always that little voice in the head that warns you (at least, my head is full of voices but that is an other story).
If the original (or previous) developers are available, contact them and ask as much as you can. If they are gone you are on your own. (If they all have left that is also a sign).
Definitely the documentation. Diving straight into the code can be a bit scarey if you don't really know what it does or how it works.