Coding standards are typically defined as a style guide that dictates the organization and styling of code. Where spaces, tabs, and braces are placed are part of specific coding standards. When starting out, coding standards can feel unnecessary and annoying, as it doesn’t affect whether your code is syntactically correct or works. As you continue to code in the real world, especially when submitting your code to a professor, working in a team, or a larger project, the details of coding standards show to be helpful and impactful.
I’ve come to see coding standards as not simply a requirement, but also as a tool. When using coding standards, my code becomes easier to read, understand, and is more consistent. Not only are they helpful in keeping my coding consistent, but also help make code clearer for others reading it. It is helpful to remain consistent with the patterns when attempting to switch between projects, coworkers, or even reading your own old code.
Though I have used VSCode in the past, I have not used an IDE since AI has begun to develop further, and even beyond that my original experience with VSCode did not include additional downloads. Reintroducing myself to VSCode, and familiarizing myself with the new capabilities of copilot within VSCode in assisting with simple programming was a total game changer. What was really new for me however was ESLint. Before taking this class, the coding standards provided for my work were provided simply by the professor, things like a preference for spaces over tabs in C, a certain amount of spaces per line. While these are coding standards, I have never experienced using an extension such as ESLint to detect and enforce coding standards. Though it was a little overwhelming at first, with the vast amount of red squiggles and messages in the problems panel, it had a quick learning curve, and proved to be super interesting and useful. I appreciate the convention of being able to make a quick fix using the ‘ –fix’ in the terminal, as well as with help from copilot. Before running ESLint I had code that worked, but wasn’t up to standard. ESCode helped me quickly realize and correct any mistakes I had not recognized as problematic.
While correcting mistakes pointed out by ESLint can be frustrating, as you are aware your code would execute correctly, I appreciate it as an important skill for not only this class but future endeavors. Being able to adhere to coding standards and make your work neat and comprehensible for your coworkers is bound to be an essential facet of teamwork, and will expedite group work. When you adhere to coding standards less time will be spent deciphering and comprehending your programming, and can instead be spent fixing or improving it.
Learning more about coding starts through ESLint helped me understand more about how the code was intended to be written. I strongly agree with the idea that coding standards is a great technique to help you develop your software engineering skills. Coding standards improve not only what you are outputting, but they expedite team projects, leading to fewer bugs and easier debugging.
Of course, while coding standards may help users learn better coding practices, they also make code more aesthetic. Readable code is more easily understandable, which in turn makes it simpler to maintain and upkeep. Even if some rules of coding standards seem arbitrary or annoying at the time, constitency in aesthetics and readability will improve the scope and longevity of your coding projects.
At the end of the day, coding standards are not just about making your code prettier, they are also about making your code better. Coding standards make your code more readable, secure, predictable, and maintainable. While ESLint is a new tool for me, making the adjustment is easy to learn and will pay off in the long run. Coding standards affect how I approach learning and writing programs. All in all, following coding standards helps make me a better programmer, collaborator, and student.