7 Clean Coding Practices Developers Should Follow

Developers have this tendency to write efficient code, but sometimes they lack clean coding practices. A good developer writes code that is understandable by machines, but the best developer writes code that is understandable by other developers. The code written should look good, clear, and understandable. 

Take a scenario where a developer has implemented code for an application, and the other developer is asked to update the changes to it. The other developer can only understand the code if the code written is clear and the primary developer follows the clean coding practice. Here are some of the best clean coding practices that developers should follow:

1. String With Double Quotes

A string is a group of characters. A standard way of entering a string should generally be declared in a double quote (" ") whereas a character should be declared in (' '). 

case 1: string name = 'GeeksforGeeks'

In case 1, in Java, if you enter a string in a single quote, it may throw an error which is not the case in JavaScript and Python since they are dynamic in nature. 

case 2: string name = "GeeksforGeeks"

In case 2, using this in all languages will not throw an error since it follows the standard syntax form. 

Case 2 is the much-preferred choice, be it any programming language as it reduces the compilation time and there's no confusion about whether it's a string or a character.

2. Optimizing Code With Minimal Else From Conditional Handling

Whenever you solve a case where you have two conditions given, generally a programmer tends to use the if-else condition.

if(condition1){ //statement1 } else if (conditionn2){ //statement2 }

In this case, instead of writing multiple else, you can just go with the if condition. This may make your code look cleaner and optimized too.

if(condition1){ //statement1 return; } if (conditionn2){ //statement2 return; }

Also, since else covers all the conditions except if whereas if you use only if, it may proceed only when the required condition passes. Therefore, using if makes your code look clean and optimized too. 

3. Using Built-In Functions

If you want to perform any operation, instead of writing the long code, do prefer built-in functions which make the code look short and also make it optimized.

For example, in Python if you want to remove an item from an input list, the general method would be:

# list initialization
li = [1, 2, 3, 4]
new_li = []

# element input from user
input = 4

# loop to iterate the element from list
# and then check the input element to remove
for i in li:
  if i != input:
    new_li = new_li + [i]
print(new_li)

Instead, you can use a.pop() function which is a built-in function used in Python that when used makes the code less complex and reduces compilation time instead of writing multiple lines of code. 

fruits = ['apple' , 'mango' , 'banana']
fruits.pop(0)
print(fruits)

The above code removes the first element i.e., apple from the list by writing just 2 lines of code. Using built-in functions makes the code look short, maintainable, and more secure. 

4. Variable Declared Outside the Loop

When you're implementing a solution and forget to declare a variable, you declare it in a loop (for, while, do-while).

Case 1:

for(int i - 0; i < 10; i++){

// code to implement

}

Case 1 should not be followed. 

Case 2:

int i;

for (i = 0; i < 10; i++){

           // code to implement

}

A variable should be declared globally i.e., outside the loop. Following this method decreases the chance of error, as the variable is globally declared it can be used anywhere in the program.   

5. Length of Line

A line in a program should not exceed 80 characters. 

Case 1: 

nameIs("geek", "new", "old", "coder", "programmer", "program")

Case 2:

nameIs("geek", "new", "old", "coder", "programmer", 

             "program")

When you observe a line is exceeding 80 characters, break the line and continue it in the second line giving an indent of 8 spaces. This is the standard way of writing code. This is one of the clean coding practices developers should follow. 

6. Indentations & Comments in Code

A good code is one that has proper indentations and comments wherever needed. When you're in hurry, sometimes you forget to write comments where required. 

Case 1:

if (condition1){

//statement                                                                          

int c= a+b;                    

}

In Case 1, the code is not understandable and clear 

Case 2:

if (condition1){

    // statement                                                                               // a four-space indent makes the code look clear

    int c= a+b;                                                                                   // this adds a and b and stores it in c

}

Whereas in Case 2, adding comments to the code is necessary as it helps the other developers to understand the code properly. Also, giving proper indentations makes the code look readable, thus following the proper format.

7. Avoid Multiple Statements in a Line

When in hurry, developers tend to write multiple statements in a single line using a semicolon (;). 

Case 1:

int a = 10; b=6;

Case 2:

int a=10;

int b = 6;

The above-given case 2 is much more optimized and readable. Writing one statement per line improves clarity, makes debugging easier, and helps other developers quickly understand the code flow without confusion. It also reduces the risk of missing errors or misunderstandings caused by compressed code.

Conclusion

Writing clean code is as important as writing efficient code. Clean coding practices ensure that your code is easy to read, maintain, and extend by other developers, including your future self. Following standards like using consistent quotes for strings, minimizing unnecessary else statements, leveraging built-in functions, proper variable declarations, keeping line lengths manageable, adding meaningful comments and indentations, and avoiding multiple statements per line all contribute to producing high-quality code. Adopting these practices not only improves collaboration and productivity but also leads to more robust and error-free software. Ultimately, the best code is the one that communicates its intent clearly and stands the test of time.