Please declare the variable outside of the function 'loop'.

Please declare the variable outside of the function 'loop'.

This is a coding style preference, and I'd prefer to keep it as it is. Is there a style guide that's been published by the Arduino team? That's not meant to be a snarky response, or defensive - I just would genuinely like to know if there is a style guide that's been published by the Arduino team, and if there is, if it states that variables be declared globally and at the top of the file.

This is a coding style preference, and I prefer this convention for the following reasons:

1. The variable/const is close to where it is used, and you don't need to go hunting around to find where it's declared, what type it is, and what it's value is.
2. Keeping the variable within the function doesn't add a global variable and doesn't pollute the global scope.
3. This convention lends itself well for refactoring. Since The variable is only used in the one location (and that's the sole intention), the contents are self-contained and can easily be refactored into a new function (whether in the same file, or in a different file).

I've worked at several companies in my career, and all companies (or at least the recent ones that I remember) used this coding style. I did some googling, and found these discussions:

In Java, should variables be declared at the top of a function, or as they're needed?
https://stackoverflow.com/questions/1411463/in-java-should-variables-be-declared-at-the-top-of-a-function-or-as-theyre-ne

Declaring variables inside or outside of a loop
https://stackoverflow.com/questions/8803674/declaring-variables-inside-or-outside-of-a-loop

Why declare variables close to where they are used?
https://softwareengineering.stackexchange.com/questions/113262/why-declare-variables-close-to-where-they-are-used

Moved toarduino/arduino-examples#20