Starting a small business can be both very exciting and extremely stressful. Competing in the modern business landscape can be difficult without a comprehensive growth strategy. Studies show that startups who focus on developing a digital first strategy can increase revenue by nearly 35 percent.
For most business owners, having custom software and web-based apps constructed is something they view as a priority. These customized tools can make a big difference when it comes to employee productivity and efficiency levels. If you are the developer tasked with building these customized tools, you need to focus on creating clean and error-free code.
Newcomers to the world of coding tend to get a bit overwhelmed when it comes to developing large scale software programs. This generally leads to a number of coding mistakes being made, which can make the program in question glitchy and unreliable.
The following are some of the things to consider when attempting to write high-quality code.
Following a Coding Standard is Important
While writing unorganized code is pretty easy, maintaining this code over time will be a nightmare. Often times, the best code will follow some type of standard. These standards provide a roadmap when it comes to things like naming conventions or formatting the code in question.
By following a standard during the code development process, you can make reading and maintaining it easier for other developers who have to interact with the project down the line. While you can create your own coding standard, it is probably best to adhere to one that is already well-known. The Zend Framework Coding Standard is among the most popular standards used by developers.
Using a coding standard and monitoring tools like AppOptics can help you create reliable apps with ease. Getting a reputation for creating top-notch code can help rise quickly in this highly-competitive industry.
Source-Pexels
Make Sure The Comments You Make are Useful and Accurate
Working on a large-scale app or software development project presents a number of unique challenges. Often times, these projects will contain thousands of code script lines, which can get very confusing. If you find yourself stepping away from a development project for a few days, coming back to it may be difficult without useful and accurate comments.
In essence, comments act as a guide for developers working on or maintaining a particular piece of code. Having comments to describe the complete function of a coding block can be extremely helpful in the future. You should also focus on keeping the comments you make accurate. As changes in the project you are working on occur, you need to reflect these changes in your comments to avoid confusion or inaccuracies.
Highly Effective Developers Refactor Their Code
Abiding by the “out of sight, out of mind” philosophy in relation to code you have written is a horrible idea. Your main goal throughout the development of a new software program or app is optimizing your code every step of the way. The best way to accomplish this goal is by refactoring your code on a daily basis.
Refactoring everything from your code architecture to your methods and functions is vital. When trying to figure out what parts of your code to refactor, consider this helpful advice.
- Functions or methods with more than 20 lines need to be refactored.
- Function names that are longer than 20 characters should be shortened.
- Keep nesting to a maximum of 2 loops to avoid resource-intensive processing.
- Work with applicable design patterns as much as possible due to how efficient they are.
By following these guidelines, you can make your code easier to read and maintain.
Source-Pexels
Automated Build Tools are Your Friend
One of the biggest complaints most new programmers have is the repetitive nature of coding various parts of a new app. Instead of performing these mundane tasks manually, you need to find the right automated build tools to help you out. Tools like Phing allow developers to create an app with a few clicks. With the right tools, the coding process can be less stressful and much faster.
Practice Makes Perfect
If you are looking for a way to build your skills as a programmer, then you need to prepare to spend hours practicing. As most high-level coding aficionados will tell you, the more you practice, the easier you will find it to create high-quality code.
