Review Checklist

Checklist version: 1.0.0, 2025-05-23.

General

• Adhere to CCL Coding Conventions.

• Use forward declarations where applicable.

• Omit redundant namespace qualifiers, such as when using the using directive or already inside a namespace.

• Avoid micro-optimizations or premature optimizations that increase code complexity.

• Ensure state transitions are balanced. Examples: use setActive(true/false), pair initialize() with terminate(), match startup() with shutdown().

Types

• Avoid mixing string types such as MutableCString and String to reduce overhead.

• Beware of implicit text encoding conversions. For example, converting a String to a MutableCString can downgrade Unicode to ASCII. See Converting between Unicode strings and C-Strings.

• Use UrlDisplayString or UrlFullString to convert URLs to strings and preserve their representation. Vice versa, use methods such as Url::fromDisplayString(). Do not break file system URLs apart using Url::getPath(). See String representations of an URL.

• Use predefined reference types whenever possible. Prefer StringRef over const String&. Other reference types: CStringRef, StringID, UIDRef, UrlRef. See :ref:`String reference types`<string_reference_types>.

• Always use XSTRING or XSTR for user-facing strings, even if the application is not localized.

• Double-check data types in public interfaces; see IUnknown interface reference.

Memory

• Use NEW macro instead of new operator for memory leak detection.

• Ensure memory allocations and deallocations are balanced. Use NEW and delete, retain() and release(). Consider smart pointers and encapsulated classes such as Buffer.

Scripting

• When extending scriptable classes, maintain parity between native and script code.

• Use DEFINE_METHOD_* macros for all methods in invokeMethod().

• Think about object lifetime when combining native code (using reference counting) and script code (using garbage collection).

Application

• Use human-readable title case for command categories and names, even for hidden commands. Command name and category should match the English display category and title. Example: File - Save As