Question 1

How to enforce GitHub's Objective-C style guide in Xcode?

Accepted Answer

You can integrate it manually by configuring Xcode's text editing settings for tabs and formatting, or use third-party tools like ClangFormat with custom rules based on the guide. However, since the repo is inactive, you might need to adapt it for newer Xcode versions.

Question 2

GitHub Objective-C style guide vs Google's Objective-C style guide

Accepted Answer

GitHub's guide focuses more on conventions like tabs and Tomdoc comments, while Google's often uses spaces and different documentation styles. GitHub's is community-vetted but inactive, whereas Google's might be more updated for larger projects. Choose based on your team's preferences and tooling.

Question 3

Best practices for Objective-C documentation comments according to this guide

Accepted Answer

The guide recommends Tomdoc-style comments, hard-wrapped at 80 characters, and documenting whether parameters allow nil. This ensures consistent and readable documentation, but you'll need to manually enforce it as automatic tools might not support Tomdoc by default.

Question 4

Should I use tabs or spaces in Objective-C code?

Accepted Answer

This guide mandates tabs for indentation, arguing for consistency, but many modern teams prefer spaces for better cross-editor compatibility. If you adopt this guide, you'll need to configure your environment to use tabs, which might cause issues in collaborative settings with mixed preferences.

Question 5

How to handle errors in Objective-C without exceptions

Accepted Answer

The guide advises using NSError ** parameters or ReactiveCocoa signals for errors, avoiding exceptions for flow control. This aligns with Apple's recommendations but requires careful implementation to ensure error propagation is handled consistently in your codebase.

Question 6

Is GitHub's Objective-C style guide still relevant for new projects?

Accepted Answer

It's less relevant for new projects due to its inactive status and the shift towards Swift. However, for legacy Objective-C codebases or teams valuing its conventions, it can provide a solid foundation, but you should supplement it with current best practices.

GitHub Objective-C Style Guide

What is GitHub Objective-C Style Guide?

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