Programming

I am wondering whether I can write for loops in the following ways

Code:

for (int i = 0; i < NL; i++) L[i]->read_param(P, i + 1);
for (int k = 0; k < lay; k++) sum += L[k]->get_npar();
for (int i = 0; i < NL; i++) L[i] = new Layer(Xi, Xf);

for (int i = 0; i < NL; i++) {
   for (int j = 0; j < NL; j++) L[i][j] = new Layer(Xi, Xf);
}

Yes, you can - C++ doesn't mandate that you use a newline in this case. However, I find that much harder to read than with a newline and proper spacing, e.g.:

Code:

for (int i = 0; i < NL; i++)
    L[i]->read_param(P, i + 1);

for (int k = 0; k < lay; k++)
    sum += L[k]->get_npar();

for (int i = 0; i < NL; i++)
    L[i] = new Layer(Xi, Xf);

Yes, you CAN.

But why would you want to? If you get a compiler error it's a lot harder to figure out what's wrong, and if you're running a debugger you have a lot less control over stepping through your code line-by-line, and a lot more limits on where you can put a break statement.

The goal is not to write complex, dense code that pushes the limits of compiler standards. Real-world coding is not a contest to see who can use the most obscure features of a language.

Would you apply the newline thing to if statements as well?