Instruction file imported from mattia72/DRipGrepper (.github/instructions/pas.instructions.md). Copyright stays with the author.

Pascal Coding Standards

General Principles

• Use English for all code comments and documentation
• Prioritize code quality and maintainability
• Follow consistent formatting and naming conventions
• Don't bother compiling errors - they are not caught correctly by VsCode
• Don't try to compile from command line - it will fail due to missing license of Delphi IDE

File Organization

• Unit names should follow PascalCase
• Uses clauses should be sorted alphabetically, each unit on a separate line
• Include a blank line between methods of a class for readability in implementation section, but not in interface section

Code Formatting

• Use 1 tab for indentation (no spaces)
• Add spaces around operators (e.g., a := b + c)
• Long lines (more than 120 characters) should be broken by a new line and an empty comment: { }
• Functions without parameters should use empty parentheses: ()
• Put begin and end blocks after keywords like then or do, even for single-line blocks

Naming Conventions

• Unit names: Follow PascalCase
• Class names: Begin with 'T' and follow PascalCase (e.g., TClassName)
• Field names: Start with 'F' (e.g., FFieldName)
• Constants: Use UPPER_CASE with underscores (e.g., CONSTANT_NAME)
• Public methods: Follow PascalCase (e.g., PublicMethod)
• Private methods: Start with lowercase letter (e.g., privateMethod)
• Local variables: Start with lowercase letter (e.g., localVar)
• Parameters: Start with underscore and lowercase letter (e.g., _parameterName)

Control Structures

• Loop variables should be declared as inline variables:

  for var i: Integer := 0 to count do begin
      // loop body
  end;

Collections

• prefer using Spring.Collections against System.Generics.Collections,
• Use IList<T> or IDictionary<K, V> for collections
• Use TArrayEx<T> where applicable for array operations

Shared references

• Use IShared<T> from Spring4D for shared references to objects, to get rid of finally free blocks and avoid memory leaks
• Use var obj := Shared.Make<T>(T.Create(...)) to create shared references

Records

• Use record for simple data structures
• Use New for creating instances of records
• Use T prefix for record types (e.g., TMyRecord)

Comments and Documentation

• Use english for comment texts
• Use single-line comments // for short explanations
• Use multi-line comments { } for detailed descriptions
• Document complex algorithms and business logic

Quality Assurance

• Build all relevant projects after changes to ensure compilation
• Ensure code follows these standards before submission

Project specific guidelines

DRipGrepper

• For new message boxes use TMsgBox from RipGrepper.Helper.UI unit.