Wolfgang Denk wrote:
In message 20080813171332.GC24225@ld0162-tx32.am.freescale.net you wrote:
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.
See http://www.denx.de/wiki/U-Boot/CodingStyle, bullet 4.2:
Use TAB characters for indentation and vertical alignment, not spaces
OK, I was looking at the Coding Standards section of the README.
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 very same reasons apply for vertical alignment.
They do not. It specifically *disallows* changing the tab size, and has no correlation to code structure.
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
That's 8 times better than the 100% chance that it will shift when using spaces for alignment.
I disagree. It's much easier to edit when I know how many spaces I'll have to add/remove beforehand.
-Scott