[FEATURE] Code quality checks

[kvedala]

Detailed Description

The repo code quality has been quite poor until the introduction of cpplint static code analysis checks.
Even then, there are many instances where the checks have not been enough:

1. code formatting is not checked by cpplint - introduced clang-format in GitHub actions to atuofix formatting per Google C++ standards Major rework to improve code quality and add automation checks #805
2. cpplint checks are quite limited and hence a suggestion to use clang-tidy was proposed Should this repo lint C++ code with clang-tidy or cpplint? #808
3. clang-tidy would be ideal with following important points to note
   • there is no GUI to view the results
   • extensive checks and the repo is not unto the standards and would require more effort to fixing it
   • easy to implement the checks only on modified files to mitigate the above problem
   • the above bandaid fix would again cause the repo to be inconsistently formatted code
4. LGTM addresses the two as a mid-way solution
   • it performs more stringent checks than cpplint but is more permissive than clang-tidy.
   • The output is presented as a convenient GUI for easy views
   • Ability to post a comment on pull-requests after successful checks
   • List of checks
   • The parent company of LGTM is to become an integral part of GitHub and hence, I believe a proven and credible platform.
5. There are other tools as discussed in the comments below.
   • CodeFactor was one
   • Codacy was another and here is my personal summary

Let us discuss the benefits and drawbacks of such an implementation.

I did create a temporary pull-request for review and discussion #897 (This now seems redundant)

Please review thoroughly and cast your vote on the tool you'd prefer by clicking on that tool below. If selected other, please add a comment mentioning which toll and why.

[kvedala]

@mishraabhinn @ayaankhan98 @AnupKumarPanwar @deadshotsb @Panquesito7 @StepfenShawn @Anmol3299 @iamnambiar @liushubin-gitHub @tjgurwara99 @cclauss

[ayaankhan98]

can we use Codacy instead of LGTM?

[Panquesito7]

CodeFactor seems good to me.
It might be a good option.

[mishraabhinn]

Is lgtm paid ?

[Panquesito7]

Is LGTM paid ?

No, it's free.

[kvedala]

can we use Codacy instead of LGTM?

Please elaborate on your points to make your case for the yet another tool.

[kvedala]

CodeFactor seems good to me.
It might be a good option.

Please elaborate on your points to make your case for the yet another tool.

[Panquesito7]

Please elaborate on your points

• Similar to LGTM.
• AFAIK, build runs faster than LGTM.
• Customizable rules.
• Autofix available.
• Supports more programming languages such as:
  • Java.
  • C#.
  • Bash.
  • CSS.
  • And many others.
• Has Slack integration.

[mishraabhinn]

Continuous code quality and automated code review tools

[kvedala]

Please elaborate on your points

• Similar to LGTM.

• AFAIK, build runs faster than LGTM.

• Customizable rules.

• Autofix available.

• Supports more programming languages such as:

  • Java.
  • C#.
  • Bash.
  • CSS.
  • And many others.

• Has Slack integration.

• Probably has other stuff I don't know of.

That's my opinion; I think Code Factor is better than LGTM. 🙂

• The more-programming languages option is pretty much useless in this repo - This is exclusively for C++
• This is the current status. so, LGTM is performing more stricter tests than Code Factor.

[ayaankhan98]

can we use Codacy instead of LGTM?

Please elaborate on your points to make your case for the yet another tool.

codacy is yet another tool which ensures good code standard, With Codacy, we get static analysis, cyclomatic complexity, duplication and code unit test coverage changes in every commit and pull request.
we can use Codacy to enforce your code quality standard, save time in code reviews, enforce best practices, on integrating with repositories we get quality analysis of every pull request.

apart from this i personally used codacy in some of my repositories i liked it, the GUI is pretty good and provides detailed analysis of everything. we can also define our own settings for pull requests and commits that act as thresholds to our work.