CS712/CS812
Coding Conventions
Spring 2003

The code you write should conform to the following conventions:

• No tabs. They are evil!

• Use consistent indentation. (Preferably two-space indentation.)

• Lines should be no longer than 80 characters.

• Declare only one identifier (e.g. variable) per line.

• Use Java-style names. charsPerLine rather than chars_per_line.

• Use meaningful names (in English).

• Always use function prototypes.

• Avoid long functions.

• Function bodies should be well-commented. Something that is obvious to you in February may not be obvious to either you or me in April.

• Use symbolic constants when appropriate.

• Place { and } in a consistent manner.

• Use blank lines liberally to improve readability.

• Each function should have a header comment describing its purpose.

• Avoid global variables. I need to approve each global variable that is visible across multiple files.

• Use "static" to hide functions and global variables that do not need to be visible across multiple files.

• All code should compile cleanly, with no warnings (unless I explicitly approve them).

• Test all library calls (e.g. malloc) for failure.

• Use the "message" module to report errors (both internal and user).

Also, you need to avoid C constructs that our compiler does not implement:

• No initializers.

• No bitfields.

• No old-style functions.

• No // comments.

• No other ANSI 1999 features.

Comments and questions should be directed to hatcher@unh.edu