Java code conventions

The Java code conventions make programs more understandable by making them easier to read. Whenever we are writing code then it is recommended to follow some coding standards and conventions so the readability and maintainability of the code will be improved.

The name of the components should reflect the purpose or functionality of those components. In project development we should choose names for basic programming elements very carefully. The name should be meaningful and relevant to the present context.

For example, if we are developing a project for a bank,

• The class name should be a bank,
• variable names should be accountNumber, balance, username, password, etc.
• Method names should be withdrawn, deposit, get Balance, transferMoney, etc.

If we don’t follow above Coding standards and naming conventions then we don’t get any compile-time error and runtime error. But our program is not readable, and not accepted in the project.

Coding standards and naming conventions are contracts among all Java developers to develop a project with the same styles of code.

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Java code conventions for class and interfaces

Class

• It represents objects so the name of a class should be “Noun”.
• The class name should be in title case, which means the first letter should be in the capital. If it contains multiple words then every inner word should start with an uppercase letter.
• Try to use the class names simple and descriptive.
• It is recommended to use the whole words. Try to avoid the acronyms and abbreviations unless the abbreviation is much more widely used than the long-form, such as URL or HTML.

For example:- Program, Rectangle, StringWordsFinder, BankAccount, String, Student, Collage

class Program;
class Rectangle;
class Student;

Interfaces

Interface names are similar to class names. The name of the interface also can be Adjective. Example:- Runnable, Serializable, Cloneable, Moveable, Storing

interface Moveable;
interface Serializable;
interface Runnable;

Java code conventions for Variables and Constants

Variables

• It represents value so, the name should be “Countable noun”.
• A variable name should be in camelCaseLetter (first character of the first word in lowercase and after that first letter of every inner word in uppercase).
• The variables name should not start with ‘_’ or ‘$’ characters, even though they are allowed.
• One character variable name should be avoided except for the temporary variables.
• Common names for temporary integer variables are i, j, k, m, and n. Similarly, common names for temporary characters variables are c, d, and e.

Example:- customerName, minimumBalance, name, age, mobileNumber

int age;
String name;
long mobileNumber;
float minimumBalance;

Constants

Constants are also a variable but they are final variables that mean we can’t change the value of the variables after initialization. The static and final modifiers are used for declaring the variables as constant.

• The name of the constants should be a noun.
• All characters should be capitalized. If it contains multiple words then words must be separated with underscore ‘_’ symbol.
• ANSI constants should be avoided, for ease of debugging.

For example:- MIN_BALANCE, PI, RED, BLUE, BLACK, MAX_PRIORITY, MAX_VALUE

static final int MAX_VALUE = 10;
static final int MIN_BALANCE = 500;

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Methods

• It represents action so the name of the methods should be “Verb”.
• Method name should be camelCaseLetter (first character of the first word in lowercase and after that first letter of every inner word in uppercase). Methods are ended with ().

Examples:- print(), start(), join(), getUsername(), getPassword(), getBalance(), findArea(), setPassword()

 print();
 getUsername();
 getPassword();
 findArea();

Package and module

• It represents group so it name should be “Common noun”.
• All letters should be lowercase ASCII characters, and its length should be as short as possible.
• It should be one of the top-level domain names, currently com, edu, gov, mil, net, org, or one of the English two-letter codes identifying countries

For example:- io, lang, util, dao, beans, blogic, gui

The name of module must have two words with “.”.

com.sun.eng
com.apple.quicktime.v2

Subsequent components of the package name vary according to an organization’s own internal naming conventions. Such conventions might specify that certain directory name components be division, department, project, machine, or login names.

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