Naming convention (programming)

In computer programming, a naming convention is a set of rules for choosing the character sequence to be used for identifiers which denote variables, types, functions, and other entities in source code and documentation.

Reasons for using a naming convention (as opposed to allowing programmers to choose any character sequence) include the following:

To reduce the effort needed to read and understand source code;^[1]
To enable code reviews to focus on issues more important than syntax and naming standards.
To enable code quality review tools to focus their reporting mainly on significant issues other than syntax and style preferences.

The choice of naming conventions can be a controversial issue, with partisans of each holding theirs to be the best and others to be inferior. Colloquially, this is said to be a matter of dogma.^[2] Many companies have also established their own set of conventions.

^ Derek M. Jones "Operand names influence operator precedence decisions" An experiment investigating the effect of variable names on operator precedence selection
^ Raymond, Eric S. (1 October 2004). "religious issues". The Jargon File (version 4.4.8 ed.). Retrieved 7 November 2011.

[1] Derek M. Jones "Operand names influence operator precedence decisions" An experiment investigating the effect of variable names on operator precedence selection

[2] Raymond, Eric S. (1 October 2004). "religious issues". The Jargon File (version 4.4.8 ed.). Retrieved 7 November 2011.

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