Always Add Argument Names - C#

An argument (lol) for the use of explicit argument names in C# function calls even when they seem redundant.

1. You can assert correctness when reviewing the call site in a dumb text display (e.g. a patch in a github pull request)
2. Parameter-order refactoring won’t introduce subtle bugs and breaking changes.

This is particularly important when you have multiple arguments of the same type.

It’s also a good idea when the call doesn’t immediately make it obvious what the meaning of the parameter is. E.g. Foo(3) vs Foo(sizeInMeters: 3).

No argument names (bad)

Starting point:

void Main() { Foo("Home", "Blah"); // don't do this } void Foo(string importantThing, string otherThing) { switch (importantThing) { case "Home": DoSomething(); break; default: DoSomethingElse(); break; } Log(otherThing); } 

If Foo() is defined in a different file it’s hard to eyeball Main() and tell if the arguments line up properly.

If I now re-order the arguments of Foo() can you easily spot that the call site in Main() is now incorrect?

void Main() { Foo("Home", "Blah"); // Now broken!! But can you tell? } void Foo(string otherThing, string importantThing) // <-- parameters flipped { switch (importantThing) { case "Home": DoSomething(); break; default: DoSomethingElse(); break; } Log(otherThing); } 

With argument names (good)

Starting point:

void Main() { Foo(importantThing: "Home", otherThing: "Blah"); } void Foo(string importantThing, string otherThing) { switch (importantThing) { case "Home": DoSomething(); break; default: DoSomethingElse(); break; } Log(otherThing); } 

You can now easily see that "Home" is going to "importantThing", even in a plain-text view of the file.

If I now re-order the arguments of Foo() again, it doesn’t break because the compiler knows which string to connect to which parameter. Win.

void Main() { Foo(importantThing: "Home", otherThing: "Blah"); // still valid! } void Foo(string otherThing, string importantThing) // <-- refactored { switch (importantThing) { case "Home": DoSomething(); break; default: DoSomethingElse(); break; } Log(otherThing); }