Ask Slashdot: When Do You Include 'Unnecessary' Code? (sas.com)

"For more than 20 years I've been putting semicolons at the end of programming statements in SAS, C/C++, and Java/Javascript," writes Rick Wicklin, a researcher in computational statistics at SAS. "But lately I've been working in a computer language that does not require semicolons. Nevertheless... I catch myself typing unnecessary semicolons out of habit," he writes, while at other times "I include optional statements in my programs for clarity, readability, or to practice defensive programming." While Wicklin's post is geared towards SAS programming, Slashdot reader theodp writes that the question is a language-agnostic one: ...when to include technically-unnecessary code -- e.g., variable declarations, superfluous punctuation, block constructs for single statements, values for optional parameters that are the defaults, debugging/validation statements, non-critical error handling, explicitly destroying objects that would otherwise be deleted on exit, labeled NEXT statements, full qualification of objects/methods, unneeded code from templates...
He's wondering if other Slashdot readers have trouble tolerating their co-workers' unnecessary codes choices (which he demonstrates with a video clip from Silicon Valley). So leave your answers in the comments. When do you do include 'unnecessary' code in your programs -- and why?

Comments

"Unnecessary" code?

[Anonymous Coward]

All of my code is unnecessary, you insensitive clod!

Simple reason...

[QuietLagoon]

I put the unnecessary code in so that the next programmer who likes to complain has something to complain about besides my real code.

.
There are some programmers who like to complain about other people's code (it seems to make them think they are a better coder), so why not give them something intended for them to complain about?

Code should be as concise as possible.

[Hans Lehmann]

I never use variable names of more than one character unless all possible single character names have already been used, which rarely happens. I never indent blocks; extra white space is only superfluous. I never do in six lines of code what can be done in one long convoluted line. If the person that needs to maintain my code can't make sense of it, too bad. They're probably just a sloppy programmer.

I'm in my sixties

[Intron]

Since I make a ton of money, and my boss is itching to fire me and replace me with a Syrian refugee who will work for cafeteria scraps, I make heavy use of 6-level deep macros and the C downto operator: while (i --> 0)

Re:Anything for work

[Anonymous Coward]

I like to sprinkle //FIXME around my code. Sometimes I even put it where something needs to be fixed, though I never say what.