Obey any conventions when naming variables

[tertius]

Should I obey any conventions when naming variables?

[terri]

You must try to make your code both easy to read and understable, for that you need to have variable names short and descriptive.

A variable named $f is unlikely to mean much to you when you return to your code after a month or so. A variable named $filename, on the other hand, should make more sense.