JavaScript: Coding Standards

18 Jan 2023

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Standardization Leads to Efficiency

Code formatting is an essential part of software engineering because it helps standardize coding, which minimizes the risk of error and increases safety. When working alone in class on projects, it may not seem important to have a coding standard because you will be the only person viewing the code. However, when you become a part of a larger team, sometimes project code will be shared with other development teams that will be in charge of reading and understanding your code and documentation. Thankfully, tools can help with coding standards in frameworks such as IntelliJ. ESLint is an open-source addon that notifies you when you have a coding error and can be modified to help suit coding standards.

The Power of Coding Tools

After the first week of using IntelliJ, having tools like ESLint had proven to be powerful when writing code and understanding good formatting. Not only does it notify you when you have coding standard errors, but it will sometimes notify you if there are also errors in your code. This can save a lot of time and headaches. Also, coding standards can help you understand and develop skills in different languages more quickly. Having a standardized method of coding enables you to understand the differences between languages more quickly. This can be important for understanding the nuances, which will help with memorizing and understanding code. Coming from using frameworks like jGRASP, I have an appreciation for development tools that are integrated into IntelliJ.