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Except that were I do line breaks and how much I align the next token is a hint, how I think about the code. No IDE is able to automatically infer information, that isn't present in the input data.


That is a good point. Linebreaks are an extra channel of meaning, sort of like body language and intonation going hand in hand with speech.

Sometimes I would visually separate a short bit of code from its surroundings (and usually add a comment on top) to make it clear that it is a controversial bit that needs attention of the reader. The same mechanism applies in less extreme cases, lifting baseline legibility.


Comparing it to body language is a good insight, I haven't thought of.




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