On Wed, Aug 13, 2008 at 07:37:40AM +0200, Wolfgang Denk wrote:
This change seems to be completely unrelated to above described changes, so if it was a valid modification, it would have to be split off into a separate commit.
But then, you are changing good TAB chanracters that were used for vertical alignment into spaces. This is incorrect - please read the Coding Style requirements.
Where? I see no mention of alignment in the coding style documentation.
I know it's common practice, but could someone please explain *why* TABs are mandated for alignment? It makes sense for indentation, as it allows adjusting the tab size[1], requires fewer keystrokes to change indentation level, and conveys meaning with respect to the structure of the code.
The only thing that using TABs for vertical alignment gets you is some slight compression of the source code when not compressed by other means, an annoying 1/8 chance of the column shifting by 8 characters when the code to the left is changed, the removal of flexibility with respect to tab size, and the breakage of the alignment in patches when the tabs start at the leftmost column (due to the prepended [+- ] characters).
-Scott
[1] Yes, I know that 8 characters is canonical -- but why go out of your way to break other sizes? What "makes things easier to read" is a matter of personal preference -- and if that preference can be accomodated without hardcoding it into the source code, it should be, even if some see it as a "heretic movement". :-)