Coding Standards (was Re: Indentation...)

[Russ Nelson]

In article <2802 at hound.UUCP> rkl1 at hound.UUCP (K.LAUX) writes:

	   So, if you don't have a Coding Standards document to spell
   things out, create one and get it approved.  I never said it was
   *required* for everyone to like/agree with it - just to follow it.

I am the poster who started the whole ball of was [rolling | melting] again.

I got quite a few responses both by mail and by follow-ups to my
query, in which I asked if there exist any standards for indentation.
Several people pointed out that K&R use a consistent indentation in
their books, and also that cb and indent will impose a consistent
indentation.  Curiously, I didn't hear that people actually *use* K&R
or cb formatting.

The general advice that I got was to, when modifying existing code,
stick to the existing style, and when creating new code, use a
consistent style.

I also realize that the question that I meant to ask was larger than
just indentation -- it also covers comment style, whitespace, brace
positioning, etc.  So, to come to my rescue (?) is an article by Ken
Arnold his C Advisor column in Unix Review Vol. 6 No. 12 on "Stylistic
Stuff".

I was hoping to find out that there are only a few styles in use, so
that a user could become familiar with them all and use whichever was
appropriate (as above).
--
--russ (nelson at clutx [.bitnet | .clarkson.edu])
To surrender is to remain in the hands of barbarians for the rest of my life.
To fight is to leave my bones exposed in the desert waste.