Coding standards¶

Parts of this document are copied from netconf’s coding standards.

Python¶

Python code adheres to PEP-8 coding guidelines.
Write all code for Python 2.5; thus, all features up until and including Python 2.5 may be used.
If the choice is between a Python 2.5 way of implementing something, and a pre-2.5 way, the former should be taken.
Existing pre-2.5 constructs which have been deprecated by Python 2.5 must be reimplemented accordingly.
Existing pre-2.5 constructs which can merely be expressed more concisely with Python 2.5 can be migrated, and probably should be.
Use the docs/py.template file as a start to all Python files. Alter author and copyright information if needed.
Use Python unicode strings – u'foo' instead of 'foo'.
Private Python functions’ names should start with an underscore.

Use UTF-8 everywhere.
Limit line width to 100 characters.
Everything is in English (including comments, variable names, etc.)
All text that will be shown to users must be localized using the Pylons framework
Create tests using the Pylons framework for all functions or features that it is feasible for
When showing potentially long lists of things use the paginate module.
Use the logging module to log activity, and use the three severity levels.