TWP Style Guide

This is a guide for writing consistent and aesthetically pleasing code.

This guide was created by Felix Geisendörfer and is licensed under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license. You are encouraged to fork this repository and make adjustments according to your preferences.

Content

• Javascript
• CSS
• Editors

Javascript

Tabs for indention

Use tabs for indenting your code and swear an oath to never mix tabs and spaces - a special kind of hell is awaiting you otherwise.

Newlines

Use UNIX-style newlines (\n), and a newline character as the last character of a file. Windows-style newlines (\r\n) are forbidden inside any repository.

No trailing whitespace

Just like you brush your teeth after every meal, you clean up any trailing whitespace in your JS files before committing. Otherwise the rotten smell of careless neglect will eventually drive away contributors and/or co-workers.

Use Semicolons

According to scientific research, the usage of semicolons is a core value of our community. Consider the points of the opposition, but be a traditionalist when it comes to abusing error correction mechanisms for cheap syntactic pleasures.

160 characters per line

Limit your lines to 160 characters. Yes, screens have gotten much bigger over the last few years, but your brain has not. Use the additional room for split screen, your editor supports that, right?

Use single quotes

Use single quotes, unless you are writing JSON.

Right:

var foo = 'bar';

Wrong:

var foo = "bar";

Opening braces go on the same line

Your opening braces go on the same line as the statement.

Right:

if (true) {
	console.log('winning');
}

Wrong:

if (true)
{
	console.log('losing');
}

Also, notice the use of whitespace before and after the condition statement.

Declare one variable per var statement

Declare one variable per var statement, it makes it easier to re-order the lines. However, ignore Crockford when it comes to declaring variables deeper inside a function, just the declarations wherever they make sense.

Right:

var keys   = ['foo', 'bar'];
var values = [23, 42];

var object = {};
while (keys.length) {
	var key = keys.pop();
	object[key] = values.pop();
}

Wrong:

var keys = ['foo', 'bar'],
		values = [23, 42],
		object = {},
		key;

while (keys.length) {
	key = keys.pop();
	object[key] = values.pop();
}

Use lowerCamelCase for variables, properties and function names

Variables, properties and function names should use lowerCamelCase. They should also be descriptive. Single character variables and uncommon abbreviations should generally be avoided.

Right:

var adminUser = db.query('SELECT * FROM users ...');

Wrong:

var admin_user = db.query('SELECT * FROM users ...');

Use UpperCamelCase for class names

Class names should be capitalized using UpperCamelCase.

Right:

function BankAccount() {
}

Wrong:

function bank_Account() {
}

Use UPPERCASE for Constants

Constants should be declared as regular variables or static class properties, using all uppercase letters.

Node.js / V8 actually supports mozilla's const extension, but unfortunately that cannot be applied to class members, nor is it part of any ECMA standard.

Right:

var SECOND = 1 * 1000;

function File() {
}
File.FULL_PERMISSIONS = 0777;

Wrong:

const SECOND = 1 * 1000;

function File() {
}
File.fullPermissions = 0777;

Object / Array creation

Use trailing commas and put short declarations on a single line. Only quote keys when your interpreter complains:

Right:

var a = ['hello', 'world'];
var b = {
	good: 'code',
	'is generally': 'pretty',
};

Wrong:

var a = [
	'hello', 'world'
];
var b = {"good": 'code'
				, is generally: 'pretty'
				};

Use the === operator

Programming is not about remembering stupid rules. Use the triple equality operator as it will work just as expected.

Right:

var a = 0;
if (a !== '') {
	console.log('winning');
}

Wrong:

var a = 0;
if (a == '') {
	console.log('losing');
}

Use multi-line ternary operator

The ternary operator should not be used on a single line. Split it up into multiple lines instead.

Right:

var foo = (a === b)
	? 1
	: 2;

Wrong:

var foo = (a === b) ? 1 : 2;

Do not extend built-in prototypes

Do not extend the prototype of native JavaScript objects. Your future self will be forever grateful.

Right:

var a = [];
if (!a.length) {
	console.log('winning');
}

Wrong:

Array.prototype.empty = function() {
	return !this.length;
}

var a = [];
if (a.empty()) {
	console.log('losing');
}

Use descriptive conditions

Any non-trivial conditions should be assigned to a descriptively named variable or function:

Right:

var isValidPassword = password.length >= 4 && /^(?=.*\d).{4,}$/.test(password);

if (isValidPassword) {
	console.log('winning');
}

Wrong:

if (password.length >= 4 && /^(?=.*\d).{4,}$/.test(password)) {
	console.log('losing');
}

Write small functions

Keep your functions short. A good function fits on a slide that the people in the last row of a big room can comfortably read. So don't count on them having perfect vision and limit yourself to ~15 lines of code per function.

Return early from functions

To avoid deep nesting of if-statements, always return a function's value as early as possible.

Right:

function isPercentage(val) {
	if (val < 0) {
		return false;
	}

	if (val > 100) {
		return false;
	}

	return true;
}

Wrong:

function isPercentage(val) {
	if (val >= 0) {
		if (val < 100) {
			return true;
		} else {
			return false;
		}
	} else {
		return false;
	}
}

Or for this particular example it may also be fine to shorten things even further:

function isPercentage(val) {
	var isInRange = (val >= 0 && val <= 100);
	return isInRange;
}

Name your closures

Feel free to give your closures a name. It shows that you care about them, and will produce better stack traces, heap and cpu profiles.

Right:

req.on('end', function onEnd() {
	console.log('winning');
});

Wrong:

req.on('end', function() {
	console.log('losing');
});

No nested closures

Use closures, but don't nest them. Otherwise your code will become a mess.

Right:

setTimeout(function() {
	client.connect(afterConnect);
}, 1000);

function afterConnect() {
	console.log('winning');
}

Wrong:

setTimeout(function() {
	client.connect(function() {
		console.log('losing');
	});
}, 1000);

Use slashes for comments

Use slashes for both single line and multi line comments. Try to write comments that explain higher level mechanisms or clarify difficult segments of your code. Don't use comments to restate trivial things.

Right:

// 'ID_SOMETHING=VALUE' -> ['ID_SOMETHING=VALUE'', 'SOMETHING', 'VALUE']
var matches = item.match(/ID_([^\n]+)=([^\n]+)/));

// This function has a nasty side effect where a failure to increment a
// redis counter used for statistics will cause an exception. This needs
// to be fixed in a later iteration.
function loadUser(id, cb) {
	// ...
}

var isSessionValid = (session.expires < Date.now());
if (isSessionValid) {
	// ...
}

Wrong:

/* Execute a regex */
var matches = item.match(/ID_([^\n]+)=([^\n]+)/));

// Usage: loadUser(5, function() { ... })
function loadUser(id, cb) {
	// ...
}

// Check if the session is valid
var isSessionValid = (session.expires < Date.now());
// If the session is valid
if (isSessionValid) {
	// ...
}

Object.freeze, Object.preventExtensions, Object.seal, with, eval

Crazy shit that you will probably never need. Stay away from it.

Getters and setters

Do not use setters, they cause more problems for people who try to use your software than they can solve.

Feel free to use getters that are free from side effects, like providing a length property for a collection class.

CSS

Sass

Sass Style Guide on CSS-Tricks

Naming conventions

Class names should be specific

Use class names that are as short as possible but as long as necessary.

Right:

.navigation
.author
.header
.info-box
.maps

Wrong:

.nav
.atr
.a
.b

Classes are all lower case

Right:

.headeline
.mapbox

Wrong:

.headLine
.mapsBox

Use dash for chaining words in classes

box-header
a-really-long-chain-of-classes
parent-name-child-name

Parent class names should be repeated for nested elements

E.g. [parent]-[child]-[subchild]

.maps
	.maps-header
	.maps-content
		.maps-content-box
	.maps-footer

Adding classes to an existing element repeats it's nested position in its name

.maps
	.maps-box .maps-box-small
	.maps-box .maps-box-highlight

Never attach CSS rules to js- classes

Editors

Use tab for intendations

Tabs can be configured to display to everyones liking. Spaces can't!

Configure your editor to "show invisibles"

This will allow you to eliminate end of line whitespace, unintended blank line whitespace, show when you have spaces where you should have tabs and avoid polluting commits.

Sublime settings eg:

{
	"detect_indentation": false,
	"dictionary": "Packages/Language - English/en_AU.dic",
	"draw_white_space": "all",
	"scroll_past_end": true,
	"word_separators": "./\\()\"':,.;<>~!@#$%^&*|+=[]{}`~?",
	"word_wrap": false
}