C++ Code Modernization Guidelines

Whenever editing code, try to follow the “Boy Scout Rule”, i.e., leave code surrounding your in a better state than before. For Mantid in particular, pay attention to the following:

• Do not pass shared_ptr unless you are passing ownership. Just pass const MyClass & or MyClass & instead.

• Replace uses of new by std::make_unique, where possible.

• Split large functions/methods into smaller functions/methods. Consider using free functions since that facilitates unit testing and code reuse.

• Remove trivial or obvious comments. If a comment can be changed into a better variable name, do so.

• Where it makes sense, replace boolean or integer flags by enum or preferably enum class. Even better: Avoid them entirely, e.g., by moving code into two separate free functions.

• Use auto to capture complex return types such as std::vector<...> or std::map<...>.

• If you encounter unit tests that look incomplete, such as not verifying that algorithm output, either fix it (if possible in reasonable time), or add a note to https://github.com/mantidproject/mantid/issues/25461.