Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!husc6!cmcl2!rutgers!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!osu-cis!att!ihlpb!nevin1 From: nevin1@ihlpb.ATT.COM (Liber) Newsgroups: comp.lang.c Subject: Re: Proposal for a scientific look at C style choices Message-ID: <9279@ihlpb.ATT.COM> Date: 28 Dec 88 00:19:59 GMT References: <272@twwells.uucp> Reply-To: nevin1@ihlpb.UUCP (55528-Liber,N.J.) Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories - Naperville, Illinois Lines: 25 In article <272@twwells.uucp> bill@twwells.UUCP (T. William Wells) writes: >I consider the braces as a separate element: sometimes necessary for >the compiler (but I always use the braces), but contributing little or >nothing to the understandability of the program. If the braces are necessary for the compiler (which they sometimes are), then they do contribute to the understandability of the program. Otherwise they wouldn't be necessary! >The indentation of >the program is what tells you the control relationships; the braces >are redundant information, at best they can augment what the >indentation is alreaddy telling you. I feel the opposite is true (indentation provides the redundant information, not the braces). If the braces are wrong, my program probably won't do what I intended it to do. If the indentation is wrong, my program can still compile and run correctly. Indentation are like comments in that there is nothing to enforce them being correct. For maintaining other people's code, I can only rely on the same things that the compiler relies on (in this case, the braces instead of the indentation). -- NEVIN ":-)" LIBER AT&T Bell Laboratories nevin1@ihlpb.ATT.COM (312) 979-4751