Updated May 31, 2023
Definition of C++ Formatter
C++ formatter is a tool or software available to format/ beautify the C++ source code in the desired format. C++ formatted software provides many coding style schemes which help in formatting with the proper indentation of the source code in various styles or according to the specific requirements of the programmer. These code formatters are also known as beautifier tools in the market. Formatting source code is a must as it helps in easy understanding and improves bug hunting, saving a lot of time and money.
Need of C++ Formatters in Source Code
Let us understand the need for C++ formatters with the help of an example:
Code:
#include <iostream>
using namespace std;
intmain()
{
int num1, num2, add;
cout<< "Enter the first integer";
cin>> num1;
cout<< "Enter the second integer";
cin>> num2;
add = num1 + num2;
// Printing the addition result
cout<< "The result is " <<add ;
return 0;
}The above code is the simple addition of 2 integer numbers. But how it is written makes it very uneasy or difficult to understand. There is a need for proper indentation and required spaces in the code. Code after ‘{‘ should be written and should be indented properly to show that the required block of code is a part of it. It should be formatted as given below:
#include <iostream>
using namespace std;
intmain() {
int num1, num2, add;
cout<< "Enter the first integer";
cin>> num1;
cout<< "Enter the second integer";
cin>> num2;
add = num1 + num2;
// Printing the addition result
cout<< "The result is " << add;
return 0;
}In real-time projects, the code is lengthy and has many functions, methods, specific blocks, loops, nested loops, etc., starting and ending multiple times in the code. Moreover, there are particular teams of developers, testers, and maintenance people working on it accessing the same code.
Types of C++ Formatters
There are a lot of formatters / beautifiers available in the market. Let us understand some of the commonly used formatters in detail:
1. Clang-Format
Clang format is one of the most popular open-source formatters used to format C, C++, and Objective C source code. It automatically formats the C++ code and helps better understand the code. To format the source code automatically according to Electron C++, we need to run the following command:
clang-format -i file_path.ccUsers can also perform the formatting of code according to the specific requirements (other than the one available by default) by inserting the style in ‘.clang-format’ file or using the option -style = “{key:value, ….}”.
2. PrettyPrinter
Pretty Printers and beautifiers are essential tools while coding in programming languages like C++. It accepts the source code file and generates the other equivalent code file with proper format and indentation according to the respective syntax and control statements. The main purpose of PrettyPrinter is the proper indentation of code which helps reveal the nesting of functions and loops with their proper opening and closing braces. It helps in revealing many syntactical errors to the programmer.
3. Jindent
It automatically indents the code according to the syntax and correct coding conventions, which helps in finding the bugs in the code and saves time. One of the cool features of Jindent is that it provides a plugin for almost all popular IDEs like Visual Studio, Eclipse, Netbeans, etc so that it can be used easily by the programmers/ testers working on them. It allows its invocation from the shell scripts. Jindent provides support for all the Operating systems is it Windows, Mac, or Linux. Jindent is very user-friendly as it provides the GUI so that the user can perform actions like formatting settings, changing the environment variables, etc, very easily.
4. Highlighter
It is very user-friendly and hence pretty simple to use. Users must copy the source code in the desired text field, choose the C++ language, and Style dropdown to have the required formatting. It provides other interesting features as well as one can also choose to see the line numbers on the left side of the code and can directly insert the source code in the HTML page without adding any external CSS and JavaScript file to it.
Conclusion – C++ Formatter
The above description clearly explains the various formatters/beautifiers available in the market used to format the source code of C++ programs. Proper formatting and indentation are a must while working on real-time projects as it helps in a clear understanding of code and finding the bugs and hidden errors easily, especially the syntactical ones. It helps the maintenance team also to maintain the code properly and proceed further accordingly.
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