Spaces Don't Much Matter

An expression can be written without using any spaces. Operators and parentheses are enough to separate the parts of an expression. You can use one or more spaces in an expression to visually separate the parts without changing the meaning. For example, the following is a correct expression:

(hoursWorked*payRate)-deduction

The following means exactly the same:

(hoursWorked * payRate) - deduction

Use spaces wisely to make it clear what the expression means. By making things clear, you might save yourself hours of debugging. Spaces can't be placed in the middle of identifiers. The following is NOT correct:

( hours Worked * pay Rate) -deduction

It is possible (but not nice) to be deceptive with spaces. For example, in the following:

12-4   /   2+2

it looks as if 4 is subtracted from 12, and then that the result, 8, is divided by 4. However, the spaces don't count, and the expression is the same as:

12 - 4/2 + 2

This arrangement of spaces makes it clear what the expression means.