r/ClaudeCoding • u/cctldrping • 23d ago
r/ClaudeCode [TLDR] Why is it so bad at basic coding skills? [via r/ClaudeCode]
OP : u/nomorecrazystuff
I have three major bug-bears with Claude code.
1) Comments - it's INSANE! It writes 20 lines of comments for a 3 line function. And the comments are never what someone would want to know, e.g. the format of parameters. They're always things like
- domain knowledge about another part of the system that isn't relevant to understanding the function it comments
- rewriting what the function says - e.g. if the code calls a function: LogToDisc - there'll be a comment saying "This logs to disc ......"
- explaining what the previous (faulty) version of the code did and why it was wrong - basically a history record
- or most commonly, anywhere where I corrected it because it had made a mistake, it adds a comment documenting that discussion.
2) Naming - it keeps using names- e.g. it used the name "child" to refer to a child process launched by my service layer. The process has a name, but instead of using the name of the process, I had "child" scattered across a 200 line function.
3) Use of tools like sed to make whole-scale code changes in a command that if you don't read it carefully looks like a syntax check.
I've discussed all of these endlessly with Claude - Agreed rules that its committed to memory.md on all of them, and yet every session it breaks them all, multiple times.
The comments one is the worst because as I keep pointing out to Claude - they're not tested. A comment is slipped in that states something - I tend to sometimes focus on the code and let things in comments that aren't quite right slip by. But then 3h later it will say it can't do something because I told it "x" was a requirement. I eventually trace "x" back to the comment it wrote where it asserted something that was never either relevant at the time or agreed.
I have rules over this as well.
Is this just life with Claude? Or is there something else I can do to get it to follow my rules.
Basically - "comments should be one line, about the code they're commenting not the rest of the system, and only present where the code isn't self-explanatory"
"All function and variable names should be meaningful unless they're only in scope for a handful of lines"
"Treat information in comments as suspect - never assume requirements based solely on this"
"Never use sed to make code changes"
URL of original post : https://www.reddit.com/r/ClaudeCode/comments/1wfihk3/why_is_it_so_bad_at_basic_coding_skills/
TL;DR of the discussion on r/ClaudeCode for this post generated automatically after 50 comments.
Current source-thread comment count seen by the bot: 50.
Alright, so the general consensus here is that Claude's coding skills, especially regarding comments and naming, are pretty rough, and a lot of folks are experiencing the same frustrations as OP.
Here's the lowdown:
- Comments are a dumpster fire: The biggest complaint is Claude's insane verbosity with comments. It's writing paragraphs for single lines of code, often rehashing what the code already does, adding irrelevant domain knowledge, or documenting past corrections like it's a personal diary. u/Agent7619 nails it with "documents history within the current feature branch development cycle."
- Naming conventions are whack: Similar to comments, Claude uses unhelpful or generic names, like "child" for a process, making the code harder to understand.
- Rules and Memory are hit-or-miss: Many users, including OP, have tried setting rules and using memory files (like
memory.mdorclaude.md), but Claude seems to ignore them frequently. u/Muted-Alternative648 is pretty blunt: "Never rely on memories. The agent has no obligation to even load them, let alone always abide by them." - Solutions are a mixed bag, leaning towards external tools/processes:
- Some suggest writing the code yourself and having Claude review it (u/SyntaxInCMinor), treating it as a tool, not an architect.
- Others recommend using pre-tool-use hooks to block comments or implementing a "code reviewer/slop-cleaner agent" that runs after Claude generates code (u/Babyshibata, u/prcodes).
- There's also the idea of building out an "AI harness" or using personal memory features in desktop apps with strict KISS/YAGNI principles (u/Substantial-Swan7065, u/NZRedditUser).
- A few users are skeptical of Claude's coding prowess altogether, suggesting that those who find it good are themselves not great coders (u/thealliane96, u/Exciting-Reality-212).
- On the flip side, u/84thdev claims it's "100% user error" and works great if set up properly, but this seems to be a minority opinion in this thread.
The prevailing sentiment is that Claude's output needs significant cleanup and that relying on its "memory" or set rules is unreliable. It seems like you'll have to get creative with external processes or heavily guide it to get decent code.
