Flake8
Flake8 is a Python utility that combines several tools to check the style and quality of Python code. It integrates:
- Pycodestyle (formerly known as PEP 8), which checks for compliance with the PEP 8 style guide for Python code.
- Pyflakes, which performs static analysis to find programming errors like unused imports or undefined names.
- McCabe, which checks for code complexity by measuring cyclomatic complexity.
History and Development
Flake8 was originally developed by Tarek Ziadé in 2009 to merge the functionalities of Pyflakes and PEP 8 into a single tool. Here are key points in its development:
- 2009: Flake8 was first released, combining Pyflakes and PEP 8 tools.
- 2011: McCabe was added to Flake8 to include complexity checks.
- 2013: Pycodestyle replaced PEP 8 due to a name conflict with the Python Enhancement Proposal (PEP).
- 2017: Version 3.5.0 introduced support for Python 3.6, along with several improvements in reporting and extensions.
- 2019: Flake8 3.7.8 was released, adding new features and fixing bugs.
Functionality
Flake8 performs the following checks:
- Checks for PEP 8 style guideline compliance.
- Identifies programming errors through static analysis.
- Measures cyclomatic complexity to highlight overly complex code.
- Offers customizable checks via plugins and extensions.
- Provides a command-line interface for easy integration into development workflows or continuous integration (CI) systems.
Usage
To use Flake8, you can run it from the command line:
flake8 [options] file_or_directory
Some common options include:
--exclude: Excludes certain directories or files from checks.--max-complexity: Sets a threshold for McCabe complexity.--ignore: Ignores specific errors or warnings.
Community and Support
Flake8 has a strong community support with:
- An active GitHub repository for development and issue tracking.
- Documentation available at the official site.
- Extensive plugin ecosystem for additional checks or customizations.
External Links
Related Topics