Treat your code like any other composition, such as a poem, an essay, a public blog, or an important email. Craft what you express carefully, so that it does what it should and communicates as directly as possible what it is doing; so that it still communicates your intention when you are no longer around. Remember that useful code is used much longer than ever intended. Maintenance programmers will thank you. And, if you are a maintenance programmer and the code you are working on does not tell the truth easily, apply the aforementioned guidelines in a proactive manner. Establish some sanity in the code, and keep your own sanity.
- Peter Sommerlad (from “97 things every programmer should know”)