Copy-and-paste programming

<p>Copy-and-paste programming, sometimes referred to as just pasting,  is the production of highly repetitive <a href="/facts/Computer_programming/QmSsFnu0">computer programming</a> code, as produced by <a href="/facts/Copy_and_paste/eksLoJ9M">copy and paste</a> operations. It is primarily a pejorative term; those who use the term are often implying a lack of programming competence and ability to create abstractions. It may also be the result of technology limitations (e.g., an insufficiently expressive development environment) as subroutines or libraries would normally be used instead. However, there are occasions when copy-and-paste programming is considered acceptable or necessary, such as for <a href="/facts/Boilerplate_code/xbYAfVbW">boilerplate</a>, <a href="/facts/Loop_unrolling/uasvbJWE">loop unrolling</a> (when not supported automatically by the compiler), languages with limited <a href="/facts/Metaprogramming/ujbjjJTY">metaprogramming</a> facilities, or certain programming idioms, and it is supported by some <a href="/facts/Source_code_editor/D0hecHMt">source code editors</a> in the form of <a href="/facts/Snippet_(programming)/X3P0GDlq">snippets</a>.
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Copy-and-paste programming open-in-new

Copy-and-paste programming