The Secret Waste of Invisible Code

Computers often spend precious energy running programs that achieve absolutely nothing. This ghost-like dead code executes perfectly, but because its results are ignored, the effort is entirely wasted.

You might assume that if code runs, it serves a purpose, but that is not always the case. Some dead code consists of calculations whose results are never used, while other parts are logic paths that can never actually be reached. This invisible bloat consumes memory and processing power that could be used for actual tasks. Developers spend significant time hunting these sections down to slim down software and improve efficiency.