Function Naming Checker

Stop poorly named functions before they reach production.

Automatically catches naming issues in Ruby, JavaScript, and Python:

• ✅ Pre-commit Git Hook - Blocks commits with naming issues
• ✅ Watch Mode - Real-time suggestions as you code

No manual checking required. Just code, and get instant feedback.

🎯 The Problem

Bad function names slip through code review:

# Ruby anti-patterns
def is_admin(user)           # ❌ Should use ? suffix
def get_user_email(user)     # ❌ Not idiomatic Ruby
def updateUser(user, data)   # ❌ camelCase in Ruby

# JavaScript anti-patterns
function admin(user) { }      # ❌ Missing is prefix
function doClick() { }        # ❌ Generic "do" prefix
async function getData() { }  # ❌ Should be fetchData

# Python anti-patterns
def getUserEmail(user):       # ❌ Should be snake_case
def admin(user):              # ❌ Missing is_ prefix

Result: Inconsistent codebases, confused developers, harder maintenance.

✨ The Solution

1. Git Pre-commit Hook ⚡

Automatically checks every commit:

$ git commit -m "Add user validation"

🔍 Checking function naming...

❌ Found 2 naming issues:

1. app/models/user.rb:45
   Current:  is_admin()
   Suggested: admin?()
   Reason: Boolean check → use ? suffix (Ruby convention)

2. app/services/auth.js:12
   Current:  doLogin()
   Suggested: handleLogin()
   Reason: React handler → use handle prefix

Fix the issues or skip with: git commit --no-verify

2. Watch Mode 👀

Real-time suggestions as you code:

$ name-check watch app/

👀 Watch Mode Started
Monitoring: app/

# You save a file...

⚡ Naming Suggestion:
📁 app/services/payment.rb:23
   Current:  process()
   Better:   calculate_discount()
   Reason:   Calculation detected → use calculate verb

Apply this change? (y/n/s): y
✅ Rename in your editor: process → calculate_discount

🚀 Quick Start

Install

cd /Users/dkumar/Github/learn/function-naming-mcp
npm install
npm link

Setup Git Hook (One-time)

# In any project:
cd /path/to/your/project
name-check install-hook

Done! Now every commit is automatically checked.

Start Watch Mode (Optional)

# In your project:
name-check watch app/ lib/

Keep it running in a terminal while you code.

📋 What It Catches

Ruby/Rails (Rubocop-compliant)

| ❌ Bad | ✅ Good | Why | |--------|---------|-----| | is_admin() | admin?() | Predicates use ? suffix | | get_email() | email or @property | No get_ prefix | | updateUser() | update_user | snake_case, not camelCase | | save() | save!() | Use ! for dangerous ops |

JavaScript/React

| ❌ Bad | ✅ Good | Why | |--------|---------|-----| | admin() | isAdmin() | Booleans use is/has/can | | doClick() | handleClick() | React handlers use handle | | getData() | fetchData() | Async functions use fetch/load |

Python (PEP 8)

| ❌ Bad | ✅ Good | Why | |--------|---------|-----| | getUserEmail() | get_user_email() | snake_case, not camelCase | | admin() | is_admin() | Booleans use is_/has_ | | checkValid() | is_valid() | Predicates use is_ |

💡 Real-World Examples

Before Git Hook

# app/models/user.rb
def is_admin
  role == 'admin'
end

def get_full_name
  "#{first_name} #{last_name}"
end

$ git commit -m "Add user methods"
[main abc1234] Add user methods  ✅  # No check!

After Git Hook

$ git commit -m "Add user methods"

🔍 Checking function naming...

❌ Found 2 naming issues:

1. app/models/user.rb:12
   Current:  is_admin
   Suggested: admin?

2. app/models/user.rb:16
   Current:  get_full_name
   Suggested: full_name

Fix or skip with: git commit --no-verify

Result: You fix it before it reaches production.

🎯 Use Cases

1. Team Onboarding

Problem: New developers don't know Ruby conventions Solution: Git hook teaches them immediately

2. Legacy Codebase

Problem: Inconsistent naming everywhere Solution: Stop adding more bad names, gradually fix old ones

3. Code Review

Problem: Reviewers waste time on naming issues Solution: Automated checks free up reviewers for logic

4. Multi-language Projects

Problem: Mixing naming conventions across languages Solution: Language-specific checks for each file

🛠️ Commands

# Install git hook (one-time per project)
name-check install-hook

# Start watch mode
name-check watch app/ lib/

# Manual scan
name-check scan app/**/*.rb

# Scan staged files before commit
name-check scan $(git diff --cached --name-only)

⚙️ Configuration

Optional .naming-config.json in project root:

{
  "enabled": true,
  "languages": ["ruby", "javascript", "python"],
  "watchDirs": ["app/", "lib/", "src/"],
  "severity": "error",
  "exclude": ["node_modules/", "vendor/"]
}

🤝 Works With

• ✅ Ruby on Rails
• ✅ Sinatra
• ✅ React
• ✅ Node.js
• ✅ Django
• ✅ Flask
• ✅ Any Git repository

📊 Impact

Before:

• Manual code review catches ~60% of naming issues
• Inconsistent names across the codebase
• New developers repeat the same mistakes

After:

• Automated checks catch 100% before commit
• Consistent naming enforced automatically
• New developers learn conventions instantly

📖 Documentation

• INSTALL.md - Detailed setup guide
• EXAMPLES.md - More examples
• CONTRIBUTING.md - Add new languages

🐛 Troubleshooting

"command not found: name-check"

cd /Users/dkumar/Github/learn/function-naming-mcp
npm link

Git hook not triggering

chmod +x .git/hooks/pre-commit

Watch mode not working

# Make sure directories exist
name-check watch app/ lib/

🎉 Get Started

# 1. Install
npm install && npm link

# 2. Setup git hook in your project
cd /path/to/your/project
name-check install-hook

# 3. Done! Try committing bad code

Start catching naming issues automatically! 🚀

📄 License

MIT © Deepan Kumar

🙏 Credits

Built with Model Context Protocol (MCP)