Hi there Over on the FOP mailing list we're currently putting together a Style Guide for our Java and XML sources. We've got some MUSTs and a lot of SHOULDs that shouldn't really blow up that document. So now that we've got a Wiki it would be a nice idea to come up with a Best Practice Guide to Java that we could link to. And why not have all these bright Apache people stick their heads together to create a wonderful resource.
Rules: - Well structured - Clear and concise - Better only widely agreed facts and experiences than personal opinions - Let's avoid flame wars (if a topic gets too hot, drop it because it only shows it's more personal style than common sense) - Frequent clean up on the Wiki page(s) so the document can eventually be converted to XML. Some topics (I know you'll come up with more): - Common sense when programming (write for clarity, write for easy maintenance etc.) - documentation (when, what to what extent) - Naming of variables, methods etc. (not stuff like m_ prefixes) - Exception throwing and handling - Usage of interface vs. implementation - Performance optimization (when, what, how) - Where and what to log - Links to other resources like the book "Code Complete" etc. What do you think? Jeremias Maerki FOP committer