Paul W. Oman
Abstract
There is disagreement about the role and importance of typographic style (source code formatting and commenting) in program comprehension. Results from experiments and opinions in programming style books are mixed. This article presents principles of typographic style consistent and compatible with the results of program comprehension studies. Four experiments demonstrate that the typographic style principles embodied in the book format significantly aid program comprehension and reduce maintenance effort.—Authors' Abstract
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Cross Ref
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Index Terms
- Typographic style is more than cosmetic
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Reviews
Thomas Plum
“Book format” for programs includes a table of contents, indexes (various cross-reference lists), chapters containing related procedures and functions, paragraphs separated by blank lines, sentences (horizontal statement-sequences), and font distinctions such as boldface function calls. This paper should interest everyone responsible for presentation of programs or for programming style standards. One vital issue the authors do not address is what technology is proposed to allow convenient updating of “book format” programs. Printing on paper could entail major reprints for minor changes, but online bit-mapped presentation could accommodate their “book format.”
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