Are do-while-false loops common?

Question

A while back I switched the way I handled c style errors.

I found a lot of my code looked like this:

int errorCode = 0;

errorCode = doSomething();
if (errorCode == 0)
{
   errorCode = doSomethingElse();
}

...

if (errorCode == 0)
{
   errorCode = doSomethingElseNew();
}

But recently I've been writing it like this:

int errorCode = 0;

do
{       
   if (doSomething() != 0) break;
   if (doSomethingElse() != 0) break;
   ...
   if (doSomethingElseNew() != 0) break;
 } while(false);

I've seen a lot of code where nothing gets executed after there's an error, but it has always been written in the first style. Is there anyone else who uses this style, and if you don't, why?

Edit: just to clarify, usually this construct uses errno otherwise I will assign the value to an int before breaking. Also there's usually more code than just a single function call within the if (error == 0 ) clauses. Lots of good points to think on, though.

Answer 1

The first style is a pattern the experienced eye groks at once.

The second requires more thought - you look at it and see a loop. You expect several iterations, but as you read through it, this mental model gets shattered...

Sure, it may work, but programming languages aren't just a way to tell a computer what to do, they are a way to communicate those ideas to other humans too.

Answer 2

The second snippet just looks wrong. You're effectively re-invented goto.

Anyone reading the first code style will immediately know what's happening, the second style requires more examination, thus makes maintenance harder in the long run, for no real benefit.

Edit, in the second style, you've thrown away the error code, so you can't take any corrective action or display an informative message, log something useful etc....