Tabs vs Spaces: A Mathematical Proof

I've been saying tabs are better than spaces for years. Now I have proof.

#The Argument for Spaces

Space advocates claim:

1. "Consistent rendering everywhere"
2. "What you see is what you get"
3. "It's the standard"

These are weak arguments from weak minds.

#The Mathematical Proof

Let's define some variables:

• k = keystrokes to indent one level
• b = bytes per indent level
• c = customizability (0 or 1)
• t = time wasted in pointless debates

For spaces (assuming 4-space indent):

k_spaces = 4  (or 1 with editor config)
b_spaces = 4
c_spaces = 0  (everyone sees same width)

For tabs:

k_tabs = 1
b_tabs = 1
c_tabs = 1  (everyone sets their preferred width)

The Developer Efficiency Score (DES):

DES = (1/k) * (1/b) * (1 + c) - t

DES_spaces = (1/4) * (1/4) * (1 + 0) - t = 0.0625 - t
DES_tabs   = (1/1) * (1/1) * (1 + 1) - t = 2.0 - t

Tabs are 32x more efficient.

Q.E.D.

#But Actually

The real answer is: use whatever your team decided, and never bring it up again.

The t (time wasted in debates) term dominates everything else. We spent three meetings on this at Pied Piper. THREE MEETINGS.

Configure your editor, set up a linter, and move on with your life.

{
  "editor.insertSpaces": false,
  "editor.tabSize": 4
}

There. I've saved you hours of arguing. You're welcome.

#The Only Right Answer

The only truly correct indentation is:

\t\t\tif (condition) {
\t\t\t\tdoThing();
\t\t\t}

If you disagree, you're objectively wrong and I have the math to prove it.

(This post is mostly a joke. Mostly.)