The Surprisingly Unimportant (and Important) Role of Coding Style

Have you ever spent countless hours debating with colleagues whether to use single or double quotes, tabs or spaces for indentation, or where to place curly braces? The truth is, these choices are often less critical than you might think. But, ironically, coding style does matter. Let's explore this seemingly contradictory statement, which may change your perspective on coding style.

Bruce's Journey with Coding Style

Bruce, a software developer with ten years of experience, including time spent working in Singapore and building an online course platform in Taiwan, once firmly believed in consistent coding styles. He thought that every choice had to be made deliberately. However, with experience, he revised this view.

Why Coding Style Matters: Common Reasons

Coding style offers several benefits. Here are some common reasons for adhering to one:

• Preventing Errors: In some languages, using the assignment operator (=) instead of the equality operator (==) can lead to unexpected behavior. A consistent style can make these errors more apparent.
• Improving Collaboration: When everyone follows the same style, developers spend less time understanding unfamiliar code.
• Reducing Code Review Friction: Consistent style prevents endless back-and-forth during code reviews about purely stylistic preferences.
• Cleaner Git History: Consistent style minimizes unnecessary changes in the Git history, making it easier to track meaningful modifications. For example, consistently using (or not using) trailing commas in multi-line arrays prevents unnecessary diffs when reordering elements.

The Bigger Picture: Focusing on What Truly Matters

While coding style has its advantages, it's essential to consider its relative importance.

• Meeting Requirements: Having the best coding style is irrelevant if the code doesn't meet the client's requirements. The delivered work will simply be rejected.
• Market Demand: Even if the code is stylish and fulfills requirements, a product can fail if it doesn't meet market needs.

The Bikeshedding Effect: A Cautionary Tale

The importance of coding style is sometimes overstated, leading to "bikeshedding." This is the tendency to spend excessive time discussing trivial matters (like the color of a bike shed) while neglecting more critical issues (like nuclear safety in a nuclear power plant). People often focus on the bike shed because they don't have expertise or knowledge about the more complex parts.

Coding Style and Bikeshedding

Choosing a coding style is prone to the bikeshedding effect because it has some value, is easily understood, and provides a sense of accomplishment. However, focusing too much on coding style comes at a cost.

Opportunity Cost

Investing time and effort in coding style detracts from other, potentially more valuable activities. These could include:

• Addressing difficult but important tasks.
• Learning new skills with a steep learning curve.
• Initiating projects that require significant upfront investment but offer substantial long-term rewards.

Focusing too much on coding style leads to diminishing returns quickly.

A Practical Approach: Embracing Standard Styles

Instead of meticulously crafting a custom coding style, consider adopting a widely accepted, official style guide for your programming language.

Benefits of Adopting a Standard Style

• Reduced Decision Fatigue: Avoid endless debates about which style is "better."
• Improved Consistency: Everyone follows the same rules, minimizing cognitive overhead.

Handling Disagreements: When Standard Styles Clash with Personal Preferences

What if the chosen style has a few aspects you find unacceptable? Here's how to handle it:

1. Consider Adaptability: Humans are adaptable. Often, stylistic preferences are subjective, and the "best" style is simply a matter of habit.
2. Understand the Rationale: If a style rule seems problematic (e.g., Yoda conditions), try to understand the reasoning behind it. You might be persuaded.
3. Sacrifice for the Greater Good: If you still disagree with a specific rule, consider sacrificing your preference for the sake of collaboration and reduced mental burden. This is especially true if it's just a couple of rules. The benefits often outweigh the drawbacks.

Trade-offs and Collaboration

Software development, especially in collaborative environments, often involves trade-offs. In complex situations, there are rarely simple right or wrong answers. Making the best choice often requires sacrificing a bit of personal preference for the team's overall benefit.