Types of Code

• Code base — the repository of code from which pieces of software can be built. This will typically be managed by a version control system such as git, subversion, perforce, etc.
• Submitting code — sometimes called “committing code”, or “merging a pull request”. A programmer will typically make changes to the code in a local copy of the code base. Once they are happy with the change, they will submit it to the main code base. Note: in some setups, a designated maintainer has to pull the changes into the code base, rather than the author submitting them.
• Code review — many organizations require code to be reviewed by another engineer before it can be submitted to the code base. This is a bit like having code proofread, a second pair of eyes will often spot issues that the author of the code missed.
• Pre-submit checks — sometimes called “pre-merge hooks”, “pre-merge checks”, or “pre-commit checks”. These will block a change from being submitted to the code base if tests fail, or if the code does not compile.
• A release — a piece of software is built from a snapshot of the code base. After various quality assurance checks, this is then released “into the wild”. You will often hear the phrase “cutting a release” to refer to the process of taking a certain revision of the code base and making a release from it.
• Production — this is the proper term for “in the wild” when software is deployed to a server or a system (rather than shipped to customers). Once software is released and performing business-related tasks it is said to be “running in production”