Suggestions for better programs

• Keep your programs simple. The less complex, the fewer bugs.
• You can learn a lot from a compiler. If you don't understand a feature or keyword, write a test program to try it out. See what happens when you use the feature. Use the debugger to watch a program execute.
• Learn the editor of the environment you are using. Learn the tips and tricks and keyboard combinations. The time you spend in learning how to make the editor work will save you time in the long run.
• Check the operator precedence chart when you are writing a complex expression. Make sure the operators are done in the order you expect; use parentheses to force the order that you want.
• Programmers usually write a condition like y == 5 with the variable name on the left and the constant on the right. If you get the habit of reversing the condition, like 5 == y, if you accidently write = instead of ==, the compiler will catch 5 = y because that isn't a legal expression.
• Use your text editor to search for all occurrences of = in your program and check that you used the operator you meant to use.
• Programs should always validate the correctness of input values to prevent incorrect data from affecting a program's calculations. Echo-print the input data to verify each value is where it belongs. This is crucial because an input failure in C++ does NOT produce an error message or terminate the program.
• Avoid using variables of the same name for different purposes in a program. Although the compiler handles it, it can be confusing.