Java Code Conventions

                           Java Code Conventions

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1.1 Why Have Code Conventions

Code conventions are important to programmers for a number of reasons:

• 80% of the lifetime cost of a piece of software goes to maintenance.

• Hardly any software is maintained for its whole life by the original author.

• Code conventions improve the readability of the software, allowing engineers to understand new code more quickly and thoroughly.

• If you ship your source code as a product, you need to make sure it is as well packaged and clean as any other product you create.

2 - File Names

This section lists commonly used file suffixes and names.

2.1 File Suffixes

JavaSoft uses the following file suffixes:

Java source                  :                .java

Java bytecode              :                .class

2.2 Common File Names

Frequently used file names include:

GNUmakefile       The preferred name for makefiles.We use gnumake to build our software.

README            The preferred name for the file that summarizes the contents of a particular directory.

3 - File Organization

A file consists of sections that should be separated by blank lines and an optional comment identifying each section. Files longer than 2000 lines are cumbersome and should be avoided.

3.1 Java Source Files

Each Java source file contains a single public class or interface. When private classes and interfaces are associated with a public class, you can put them in the same source file as the public class. The public class should be the first class or interface in the file.

Java source files have the following ordering:

• Beginning comments

• Package and Import statements; for example:

import java.applet.Applet;

import java.awt.*;

import java.net.*;

• Class and interface declarations

3.1.1 Beginning Comments

All source files should begin with a c-style comment that lists the programmer(s), the date, a

copyright notice, and also a brief description of the purpose of the program. For example:

/*

* Classname

*

* Version info

*

* Copyright notice

*/

3.1.2 Package and Import Statements

The first non-comment line of most Java source files is a package statement. After that,

import statements can follow. For example:

package java.awt;

import java.awt.peer.CanvasPeer;

3.1.3 Class and Interface Declarations

The following table describes the parts of a class or interface declaration, in the order that they

should appear. See “Java Source File Example” on page 19 for an example that includes

comments.

Part of Class/Interface                                                           Declaration Notes

1 Class/interface documentation                           See “Documentation Comments” on page 9 for

comment (/**...*/)                                                information on what should be in this comment.

2 class or interface statement

3 Class/interface implementation                           This comment should contain any class-wide or

comment (/*...*/), if necessary                             interface-wide information that wasn’t  appropriate                                           

                                                                               for the class/interface documentation comment.

4 Class (static) variables                                        First the public class variables, then the protected,

                                                                               and then the private.

5 Instance variables                                               First public, then protected, and then private.

6 Constructors

7 Methods                                                              These methods should be grouped by functionality

                                                                               rather than by scope or accessibility. For example, a                                          

                                                                               private class method can be in  between two public            

                                                                               instance methods. The goal is to make reading and     

                                                                              understanding the code easier.                     

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