Chapter 1

Category Examples Description
Constant KMaxFileName,
KRgbWhite
Member variable iDevice, iX,
iOppFleetView
Automatics device, x,
oppFleetView
Constants of the #define type or
const TInt type. KMax-type
constants tend to be associated with
length or size limits: KMaxFileName,
for instance, is 256(characters).
Any nonstatic member variable. The i
prefix refers to an 'instance' of a class.
Any variable declared as an automatic.
Static members aren't used in native Symbian OS code. Global variables, such as console,
are sometimes used in .exes (though not in DLLs). Globals have no prefix. Some authors
use initial capitals for globals, to distinguish them from automatics. I haven't got very strong
views on the right way to do things here, preferring to avoid the issue by not using globals.
The i convention is important for cleanup. The C++ destructor takes care of member
variables, so you can spot overzealous cleanup code, such as
CleanupStack::PushL(iMember) by using this naming convention.
As with class names, you should use nouns for value names, since they are objects, not
functions.
3.2.3 Function Names
It's not the initial letter that matters so much here, as the final letter.
Category Examples Description
Nonleaving function Draw(),Intersects() Use initial capital. Since
functions do things, use a verb
rather than a noun.
Leaving function CreateL(), AllocL(),
NewL(), RunL()
Use final L. A leaving function
may need to allocate memory,
open a file, and so on –
generally, to do some operation
that might fail because there
are insufficient resources or for
other environment-related
conditions (not programmer
errors). When you call a leaving
function, you must always
consider what happens both
when it succeeds and when it
leaves. You must ensure that
both cases are handled.
Symbian OS's cleanup
framework is designed to allow
you to do this.This is Symbian
OS's most important naming
convention.