Most coders make a lot of common mistakes throughout their programming life, especially for beginners. Some of these errors turn out to be very frustrating when a program fails to compile. Below is a list of some mistakes beginners make.
1. Messy code formatting
Most of the beginner programmers do not indent their code properly and use both whitespaces and new lines inconsistently. Although some languages such as JavaScript do not have restrictions on the code format, it is always important to indent your code so that we show its logical structure. On the other hand, whitespaces indicate where our functions, conditions, and loops start and end. This helps us avoid mistakes such as declaring a variable or function in the wrong scope.
2. Inconsistent use of lowercase and uppercase
Some programming languages are case-sensitive while others are not. Regardless the language you are using, it is always important that you remain consistent in the use of lowercase and uppercase characters when naming variables and functions. In a case where a programmer declares a variable as “var Age= 5”, then tries to reference it as “if (age>6)”; the code doesn’t run. It is recommended that a programmer applies the right convention to a particular language.
3. Over-commenting
Most programmers prefer writing their code in such a way that the variable, functions, class names and the overall architecture of the code are self-explanatory. However, there is no need to use lengthy comments or comment every line of code as if you are writing your first program.
4. Failure to know the full expressive power of a language
After one or two years into coding, a programmer should be well conversant with some of the less common functions and operators and know where to apply them to simplify their work. This helps you implement programs in fewer lines of code regardless the language you are using. However, some of the coders stick to formats they learned as beginners.
5. Confusion between programming languages, platforms, frameworks, and IDEs
Programmers, especially beginners are sometimes confused on the rules applied when using a particular language. As well, different styles have different coding platforms and IDE’s. It is essential that a coder understands the most appropriate languages for web programming, front-end web development, android programming, and general programming purposes.
6. Failure to use debugging tools
Most coders do not make use of the debugger, which is very useful when it comes to tracking down and fixing bugs in your code. Any programmer writing code in a statically typed language like C#, Java, or ActionScript3 should take advantage of debugging tools.
Other common mistakes coders make include using bad variable and function names, failure to back up their work, trusting third party codes,