kodesstil

Kodesstil is a Norwegian term used to describe the coding style or style guide applied to writing source code in a project. It encompasses the conventions and norms that govern how code is named, organized, formatted and documented. A kodesstil aims to improve readability, reduce cognitive load, and support maintainability and collaboration over time.

A typical kodesstil covers elements such as naming conventions for variables and functions, indentation and whitespace, the placement of braces or blocks, line length, and the use of blank lines to separate logical units. It also prescribes module and file organization, the structure of classes and functions, and the style of comments and documentation, including docstrings or inline notes. Language-specific rules may address the ordering of imports, the use of type hints or generics, and the conventions for testing and naming test cases. In practice, teams may adopt an internal kodesstil or align with established external guides tailored to their language, such as PEP 8 for Python or the Google Java Style Guide for Java.

Enforcement is typically achieved through tooling such as linters, code formatters, and automated checks in continuous integration pipelines. Code reviews and collaborative discussions reinforce adherence. A kodesstil is usually a living artifact that evolves with language features, project needs, and community best practices, balancing consistency and pragmatism. While some argue for flexibility, a consistent kodesstil generally reduces onboarding time, minimizes bugs, and improves long-term code quality.