Coding Guidelines - Java Programming Fundamentals

• Your Java programs should always end with the .java extension.
• Filenames should match the name of your public class. So for example, if the name of your public class is Hello, you should save it in a file called Hello.java.
• You should write comments in your code explaining what a certain class does, or what a certain method do.

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• In creating blocks, you can place the opening curly brace in line with the statement, like for example,

public static void main(String[] args){

or you can place the curly brace on the next line, like,

public static void main(String[] args)
{

• You should indent the next statements after the start of a block, for example,

public static void main(String[] args){
    System.out.println("Hello ");
    System.out.println("world");
}

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• For names of classes, capitalize the first letter of the class name. For names of methods and variables, the first letter of the word should start with a small letter. For example:
ThisIsAnExampleOfClassName thisIsAnExampleOfMethodName
• In case of multi-word identifiers, use capital letters to indicate the start of the word except the first word. For example, charArray, fileName,ClassName.
• Avoid using underscores at the start of the identifier such as _read or _write.

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• In defining a long value, a lowercase L is not recommended because it is hard to distinguish from the digit 1.

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• It always good to initialize your variables as you declare them.
• Use descriptive names for your variables. Like for example, if you want to have a variable that contains a grade for a student, name it as, grade and not just some random letters you choose.
• Declare one variable per line of code. For example, the variable declarations,

double exam = 0;
double quiz = 10;
double grade = 0;

is preferred over the declaration,

double exam = 0, quiz = 10, grade = 0;