[vtk-developers] PROPOSAL: Changing VTK's indentation style

[David Gobbi]

Hi Brad,

Even though I slightly prefer the inline "if () {" style, I can offer some
arguments against it.

1) it doesn't work well for multi-line conditionals:

    for (std::vector<typeWithLongName>::iterator iter = vec.begin();
          iter != vec.end();
          ++iter) {
      statements;
    }

versus

    for (std::vector<typeWithLongName>::iterator iter = vec.begin();
          iter != vec.end();
          ++iter)
    {
      statements;
    }

2) it's inherently inconsistent.  This is demonstrated by the following
Java-styled code that actually applies the style consistently:

    int myfunc(int x) {
      if (x == 0) {
        statements;
      }
    }

Most C++ programmers (like myself) think the above is ridiculous, but
really, why should a definition block be treated differently from a
conditional block?

In my opinion, putting the brace on the following line is nice because it
is a simple, consistent rule that produces easily readable code.

I'm a fan of compact code, but only when it is compactified according to my
own tastes.  Otherwise the compactification loses its value ;-)

 - David


On Wed, Sep 9, 2015 at 3:29 PM, Brad King <brad.king at kitware.com> wrote:

> On 9/9/2015 3:41 PM, Brad King wrote:
> >   if (...) {
> >     ...
> >   } else {
> >     ...
> >   }
> [snip]
> >   if (...)
> >   {
> >     ...
> >   }
> >   else
> >   {
> >     ...
> >   }
>
> There seems to be agreement that either of these is an improvement
> but that we should choose now which one to use.  I'm sure one can
> find endless debates across the web about which one is best.  Here
> are the main reasons I prefer the former over the latter:
>
> 1. Uses less vertical space.  This is important when the content
>    within the blocks is short.
>
> 2. The start and end of each logical block is aligned horizontally
>    and can be matched vertically with nothing in the way:
>
>      if (...) {
>      ^  ...
>      |  ...
>      |  ...
>      |  ...
>      |  ...
>      v  ...
>      } else {
>      ^  ...
>      |  ...
>      |  ...
>      |  ...
>      |  ...
>      v  ...
>      }
>
>    This is important when the content within the blocks is long.
>
> 3. Distinguishes conditional and unconditional blocks:
>
>      if (...) {
>         // conditional block
>      }
>
>      {
>        // unconditional block
>      }
>
>    Contrast this to the latter style where both look the same:
>
>      if (...)
>      {
>        // conditional block
>      }
>
>      {
>        // unconditional block
>      }
>
>    In the latter style one must read a line above the "{" to see
>    whether it is a condition.  This could be tricky if there is
>    an unrelated f(...) call there.
>
> The former style is widely used in many projects and well-supported
> by editors.
>
> -Brad
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