Questions tagged [code-formatting]
focuses on legibility and consistent look of code: lexical-level intelligibility is a basic element of coding-style
57
questions
5
votes
6answers
309 views
Is there any way of applying a code formatter to a active codebase that doesn't lead to suffering?
Often one wants to apply a code-formatter, like Black, or JuliaFormatter to a existing code-base.
One where standards have tried to be followed but a few things might have slipped in.
Once you have ...
1
vote
2answers
368 views
C# convention for empty constructor [closed]
I know an empty method without any good reason is a code smell, but it can be required for constructors.
What would be a good way to write an empty constructor among the following?
class A
{
...
2
votes
4answers
361 views
Does linting without auto-correction make sense?
In our Ruby on Rails projects we use a linter for our slim templates: slim-lint. It doesn't support any automatic fixes, not even the easiest ones. So I'd like to abandon it because I don't like to go ...
0
votes
2answers
299 views
What arguments in favor of automatic, mandatory, uniform code formatting in a software project? [closed]
I am the manager of a small team of software engineers.
I am looking for arguments in favor of automatic, mandatory code formatting.
For me it is natural, it goes with the Quality Assurance process ...
-2
votes
1answer
913 views
What Is the Best (Conventional) Way to Format Code for PyQt5
I was looking into PyQt5 for one of my side-projects and would really like to get to learn it better. However, I wasn't sure how to correctly format the code. I've seen tutorials do class definitions ...
2
votes
2answers
214 views
Where to put private computed properties?
In Clean code it's suggested that private helper functions should always exist directly below the function they're directly used within. Should I be doing this when using computed properties? It's the ...
2
votes
2answers
291 views
Highlighting importance of order when using short-circuited conditions
I was working on a piece of code when I noticed that an if statement could work or crash depending on the order used for the parts connected with and.
You can replicate the problem like this:
...
3
votes
1answer
350 views
Workflow for git / code formatting / commit hooks etc
Our team is growing, and with it, discontent with common coding standards being imposed on developers with alternate (strong, bordering on religious) views on what constitutes a good coding style.
...
1
vote
1answer
87 views
Making control flow explicit through printing instead of using comments?
I would have the opinion and good practices in script programming about using print statements to materialize the control flow (I usually use an anchor mark, then the name of the function just entered,...
4
votes
9answers
4k views
How small should functions be?
I'm new at writing professional code (the bulk of my experience is with personal projects) so excuse me if this is trivial. When I write code I find myself being a little inconsistent with how much ...
4
votes
7answers
5k views
Why should we not put end brackets on the same line? [closed]
When writing block code in languages like C++ and Java, people usually argue over whether brackets at the end of a line should have their own line.
if (condition) {
if (condition)
{
However, I have ...
1
vote
0answers
121 views
Alternative to reorder c++ tokens
Our organization is looking to standardize the way we use const T& and T const& and while we initially looked at clang-format to solve the job, it doesn't reorder tokens so there is no way to ...
0
votes
4answers
15k views
Multiline formatting of long function signatures/calls [closed]
Let's say you have a signature like so:
public void MyFooBar(IExtraSuperLongTypeName param1, TypeA param2 ISomeotherReallyLongTypeName param3, TypeB param4, TypeC param5)
Formatting in on one line ...
2
votes
3answers
1k views
Including the type name in a variable name
Abstract: Is it acceptable to include the type name in the variable name?
My scenario:
I am working with C# MVVM, and I have a lot of ICommand properties in my ViewModel, named various things like ...
2
votes
2answers
2k views
Why does gofmt discourage blank lines at the end of files?
Since I started programming, I've always been taught to leave a trailing blank line at the end of my files, the reason usually being something relating to how it makes concatenated files easier to ...
1
vote
2answers
4k views
What's the use of lint warnings vs errors? [closed]
I'm hoping someone who's given this some thought can help me understand. Most style-checking tools seem to distinguish between warnings and errors.
To me, the point of a lint error is that a style ...
1
vote
1answer
378 views
Right-aligning code [closed]
I recently was looking for a CSS solution to vertically-align elements, and I found one here.
One thing that I thought was nice was the right-justified code; example:
.vertical-center {
// ... ...
0
votes
1answer
314 views
Changing repetitive code to improve good programming design
In Java Swing if you want to add a listener to a component, it would look something like this...
JButton j = new JButton();
int counter = 0;
j.addAncestorListener(new AncestorListener() {
@...
7
votes
4answers
4k views
Code formatting: is it worth to make bad code to look bad? [closed]
In Code Complete 2nd Edition, Steve McConnell wrote the following (page 732):
Techniques that make good code look good
and bad code look bad are more useful
than techniques that make all code ...
2
votes
1answer
269 views
What is the name/origin for this C code indentation style?
Look at the formatting of the variable declarations. I haven't encountered this indentation style in the past, but lately I stumbled upon two different code examples which use this style. Where does ...
3
votes
3answers
1k views
Does code format affect performance?
I think I have came across a few times when I reformat some segment of code, it performed the way I wanted it to other than the other poorly formatted segment of code? Does code format affect ...
5
votes
3answers
292 views
Does code formatting have to matter?
UPDATE: an issue would arise from stuff that is not strictly defined by a formatter, like consecutive empty lines etc., that would get lost in the process (local to server to local reformatting) which ...
0
votes
2answers
1k views
Erlang return value conventions
Should functions that return tuples, always return tuples?
For example, I have a function is_user_name_allowed that returns a tuple in this he form if the username is not allowed:
{false, ["Reason 1"...
6
votes
1answer
2k views
Erlang function naming conventions
I understand the general Erlang conventions for functions are using snake case or camel case, but what about exported functions?
For example, say I have a gen_server module that defines a check to ...
4
votes
4answers
1k views
Identify this programming style
Some of the legacy code I've inherited uses the fact that C# supports multiple assignment to write code like:
void DisableControls()
{
ddlStore.Enabled =
ddlProgram.Enabled ...
9
votes
1answer
25k views
How to break these long C++ lines in a neat way? [closed]
I'm on my first bigger C++ project and find that I have some really long lines. My goal is to break them to 79 columns, but I do not really know how to do this in a neat way. Are there some guidelines ...
2
votes
1answer
1k views
How far to go when standardizing code [duplicate]
My small team and I have created a decent sized web application (~50k lines), with a fully featured API, all in Perl. As us perl hackers know.. it is easy to get sloppy. We had to port over a lot of ...
6
votes
2answers
194 views
Styling/formatting file for programmers, has it been done?
has there ever been a proposal for establishing a formatting style file for programmers? In web programming, we have CSS files that help separate style from 'code', so two people can see the same code ...
3
votes
4answers
173 views
Structuring an input file [closed]
I am in the process of structuring a small program to perform some hydraulic analysis of pipe flow. As I am envisioning this, the program will read an input file, store the input parameters in a ...
0
votes
2answers
630 views
Why doesn't Python just establish a format for declaring tab widths?
I've read the flame wars over the use of spaces and tabs. When working with any markup language (when scope isn't very important and when pressing space 4 times is a PITA), I tend to minimize the tab ...
7
votes
3answers
367 views
Is there any situation in which it would be appropriate to use unless… else?
This construction is considered wrong
unless
#..
else
#..
end
This is for the general reason of double-negative confusions. It translates to:
if not
#..
if not not
#..
end
We all agree ...
0
votes
2answers
282 views
Code formatting for variable declarations [closed]
Is it looked down upon or bad to write multiple variable declarations on the same line? As in:
boolean playMoreGames = true; int length;
boolean win; int ...
15
votes
7answers
6k views
Should I write compact code or code with lots of spaces? [duplicate]
I have two friends that have completely different schools of thought on how to lay out their code.
The first says that code should be well-indented and use lots of spaces and to name variables ...
6
votes
1answer
1k views
Chosing a parser for a code beautifier
I'm in the planning stage of making a code beautifier (similar to AStyle or Uncrustify) - originally I was going to just contribute to one of those projects,
but reviewing their source led me to the ...
21
votes
5answers
22k views
Is it a good idea to format the code in eclipse using auto format
I use eclipse for coding, and the language which we use is Java.
Once it was suggested by someone that to properly format the code,
using the auto formatter(CTRL+SHIFT+F)
While this command does ...
92
votes
17answers
18k views
Is imposing the same code format for all developers a good idea?
We are considering to impose a single standard code format in our project (auto format with save actions in Eclipse). The reason is that currently there is a big difference in the code formats used by ...
4
votes
1answer
360 views
Are there published guidelines, standards, or references that propose more than 80 chars per line?
Despite increases in screen size and resolution, many sources still suggest that code be limited to 80 characters per line. I realize than there are many different opinions on this subject, but I ...
-1
votes
1answer
355 views
Javascript Form Validation
When validating a JavaScript form, would it be better to process each input field individually, or, where possible check collectively?
e.g.
validate()
{
noblanks()
fieldOne()
fieldTwo(...
5
votes
3answers
366 views
How to work with badly written and formatted code
I was wondering how people deal with working in a project with badly written and formatted code, I'm talking mixed tabs and spaces, unnecessary parentheses and newlines and a whole bunch of warnings ...
7
votes
2answers
1k views
What code format has been verified by case studies as most readable? [closed]
Are there any eye-tracking case studies, or similar research done to verify what code format is easiest to read, maintain and work with?
I always format my code the following way:
function thing()
{
...
11
votes
4answers
627 views
Is it a good practice to use Auto Format the text?
I'm using Eclipse and I will talk about it as an example but I am sure that this is the case in any other IDE.
Eclipse has the CTRL-Shift-F command which automatically formats your code. Is it a good ...
2
votes
6answers
27k views
IF ELSE shorthand. Does it hurt readability [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Is the ternary operator evil?
Does using shorthand if else statments hurt readability?
Compare:
string name = street != null ? street.Owner : "Not known";
With:
string ...
29
votes
14answers
4k views
Why isn't rich code formatting more common?
I was reading Code Complete and in the chapter on layout and style, he was predicting that code editors would use some sort of rich text formatting. That means, instead of code looking like this
...
4
votes
2answers
210 views
Parameter order: size, count or the other way round
I hope this is the right forum for this ... Well, in C, the standard library uses usually (void* buffer, int size) when referring to some data buffer. I wonder if there is a rationale for this order ...
11
votes
2answers
5k views
Algorithm for formating SQL code
I need a tool (for in house usage) that will format SQL code (SQL Server/MySQL).
There are various 3rd party tools and online web sites that do it but no exactly how I need it.
So I want to write my ...
18
votes
3answers
12k views
Closing tag (?>) on PHP files?
Some people swear by closing their PHP files with ?>, some say it's more optimized to leave it off.
I know that it's not essential to have it on there, I'm just wondering what the pros and cons ...
26
votes
5answers
1k views
Formatting code a bad thing when using a VCS?
I almost always format my code before I commit to make sure it's done properly. Most of my team don't really care and don't always format their code properly (minor things that don't affect the code ...
10
votes
3answers
463 views
Code formatting : Laying out functions based on call hierarchy within a class file?
A suggestion from Bob Martin's "Clean code" has me scratching my head..
"If once function calls another, they should be vertically close and the caller should be above the callee"
So far, I've been ...
1
vote
7answers
316 views
Single line comments for multiple indented lines of code [closed]
After many years of coding, trying various programming styles, weeding out unreadable or impractical stuff, I still can't figure out one thing: what is the best way to single-line-comment multiple ...
10
votes
1answer
20k views
Header comment format
I realize that the "header comment" format varies from programmer to programmer, but what would be an example of a "good" header comment?
