term% cat index.txt STYLE(6) Games Manual STYLE(6)
NAME
style - Plan 9 coding conventions for C
DESCRIPTION
Plan 9 C code has its own conventions. You would do well to follow
them. Here are a few (and this is not an exhaustive list):
⢠don't use comments; some old Plan 9 code does, but we're converting
it as we touch it. We do sometimes use to comment-out a few lines
of code.
⢠avoid gotos.
⢠no tabs expanded to spaces.
⢠surround a binary operator (particular a low precedence one) with
spaces; don't try to write the most compact code possible but rather
the most readable.
⢠parenthesize expressions involving arithmetic and bit-wise opera‐
tors; otherwise don't parenthesize heavily (e.g., as in Pascal).
⢠no white space before opening braces.
⢠no white space after the keywords etc.
⢠no braces around single-line blocks (e.g., and bodies).
⢠integer-valued functions return -1 on error, 0 or positive on suc‐
cess.
⢠functions that return errors should set errstr(2).
⢠variable and function names are all lowercase, with no underscores.
⢠enum or #defined constants should be Uppercase (or UPPERCASE).
⢠struct tags are Uppercase, with matching typedefs.
⢠automatic variables (local variables inside a function) are never
initialized at declaration.
⢠follow the standard idioms: use not etc.
⢠don't write (nor etc.) nor always explicitly compare the result of
string or memory comparison with zero using a relational operator.
Ultimately, the goal is to write code that fits in with the other code
around it and the system as a whole. If the file you are editing al‐
ready deviates from these guidelines, do what it does. After you edit
a file, a reader should not be able to tell just from coding style
which parts you worked on.
COMMENTS
If your code is readable, you shouldn't need many comments. A line or
two comment above a function explaining what it does is always welcome.
Comment any code you find yourself wondering about for more than 2 sec‐
onds, even if it's to say that you don't understand what's going on.
Explain why.
Don't use commenting as an excuse for writing confusing code. Rewrite
the code to make it clear.
EFFICIENCY
Do the simple thing. Don't optimize unless you've measured the code
and it is too slow. Fix the data structures and the algorithms instead
of going for little 5% tunings.
SEE ALSO
``Notes on Programming in C'', Rob Pike,
http://www.literateprogramming.com/pikestyle.pdf
BUGS
Some programs use very different styles, for example, rc.
Some programs and programmers diverge from the above rules due to
habits formed long before these rules. Notably, some programs have a
single space after a keyword and before an opening brace, and some ini‐
tialize automatic variables at declaration.
STYLE(6)