code formattingcoding-style
What are the tools that are most used in the industry for formatting source code, C++ in particular, so to obtain a style consistency of the whole code base? Possibly tools that would allow the user to select which style to apply (e.g. BSD, GNU, etc…)?
I could not find many references on the web to solid, wide-spread tools for such a thing, maybe companies that use these tools build theirs in-house?
I like the concept of StyleCop, although I don't really care for a lot of the rules. Style is just so subjective that I find myself struggling to firmly decide if it should be part of our process or not. I really would prefer to see the team with a unified style, though, which is why I am so torn.
Obviously, the flip-side of the equation, with a tool like FxCop (or Code Analysis for fellow TFS users) is more based on practices, so the decision becomes more technical than personal and stylistic.
Eclipse 3.6 allows you to turn off formatting by placing a special comment, like
// @formatter:off
...
// @formatter:on
The on/off features have to be turned "on" in Eclipse preferences: Java > Code Style > Formatter. Click on Edit, Off/On Tags, enable Enable Off/On tags.
It's also possible to change the magic strings in the preferences — check out the Eclipse 3.6 docs here.
More Information
Java > Code Style > Formatter > Edit > Off/On Tags
This preference allows you to define one tag to disable and one tag to enable the formatter (see the Off/On Tags tab in your formatter profile):
You also need to enable the flags from Java Formatting
Best Answer
I am yet to see a special tool beyond what your IDE (throw in a small set of standard plug-ins to that) offers you for formatting source code. Of course, there can be organizations that are there that do use them.
You seem to be influenced by the
indenttool. Alas, most organizations tend to have their own formatting standards which may/may not relate to one of the styles you mention. They may more suitably be represented by a custom .indent file.