A code that either returns or no returns at all

TL;DR: Check carefully your boolean expressions

Problems

• Readability

• Possible Defects

Solutions

1. Refactor and remove obsolete code

Context

When a function is designed to return an invariant value, it may be poor design, but it shouldn’t adversely affect the outcome of your program. However, when it happens on all paths through the logic, it is likely a mistake.

This rule raises an issue when a function contains several return statements that all return the same value.

Sample Code

Wrong

# Gratuitous boolean expressions

if a > 0 and True:
    print("a is positive")
else:
    print("a is not positive")

Right

if a > 0:
    print("a is positive")
else:
    print("a is not positive")

Detection

[X] Automatic

Many linters can detect this problem by parsing execution trees.

Tags

• Complexity

Conclusion

Boolean expressions should be straightforward to read and understand.

Relations

Code Smell 115 - Return True

Maxi Contieri ・ Feb 20 '22

Code Smell 118 - Return False

Maxi Contieri ・ Mar 5 '22

Code Smell 101 - Comparison Against Booleans

Maxi Contieri ・ Nov 11 '21

#webdev #beginners #programming #tutorial

More Info

How to Get Rid of Annoying IFs Forever

Maxi Contieri ・ Nov 9 '20

#oop #programming #codenewbie #tutorial

SonarSource

Disclaimer

Code Smells are just my opinion.

Credits

Photo by Jungwoo Hong on Unsplash

The central enemy of reliability is complexity.

Daniel Geer

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This article is part of the CodeSmell Series.

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