Agent-Skills.md

Agent Skills: Google Go Style Guide

Google Go Style Guide for writing clear, idiomatic, and maintainable Go code. Use this skill when writing, reviewing, or refactoring Go code to ensure adherence to Google's best practices. Triggers on tasks involving Go packages, functions, error handling, naming, or performance optimization.

UncategorizedID: ryanmoran/workspace/go-style-guide

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ryanmoran/workspace
ryanmoran

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pnpm dlx add-skill https://github.com/ryanmoran/workspace/tree/HEAD/skills/go-style-guide

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skills/go-style-guide/SKILL.md

Skill Metadata

Name
go-style-guide
Description
Google Go Style Guide for writing clear, idiomatic, and maintainable Go code. Use this skill when writing, reviewing, or refactoring Go code to ensure adherence to Google's best practices. Triggers on tasks involving Go packages, functions, error handling, naming, or performance optimization.

Google Go Style Guide

Comprehensive style guide for Go programming based on Google's engineering standards. Emphasizes clarity, simplicity, and maintainability through proven patterns and idioms.

When to Apply

Reference these guidelines when:

  • Writing new Go packages, functions, or types
  • Reviewing Go code for style and idiom compliance
  • Refactoring existing Go codebases
  • Designing APIs and package interfaces
  • Handling errors
  • Making naming or formatting decisions

Core Principles (In Priority Order)

The Go Style Guide is built on five fundamental principles that should guide all decisions:

  1. Clarity - Code's purpose and rationale must be clear to readers
  2. Simplicity - Write code in the simplest way possible
  3. Concision - Maintain high signal-to-noise ratio
  4. Maintainability - Design code for future modifications
  5. Consistency - Follow consistent patterns across the codebase

When style choices conflict, prioritize based on this ordering.

Quick Reference by Category

| Category | Priority | Key Focus | Rule File | |--------------------|----------|------------------------------------|-------------------------------| | Formatting | CRITICAL | Use gofmt always | formatting-gofmt.md | | Naming | CRITICAL | MixedCaps, context-aware, concise | naming-conventions.md | | Error Handling | HIGH | Explicit, idiomatic patterns | error-handling-basics.md | | Custom Errors | MEDIUM | Sentinel errors, custom types | error-handling-custom.md | | Package Design | HIGH | Minimal dependencies, focused | package-design.md | | Documentation | MEDIUM | Explain "why", not "what" | documentation.md | | Interfaces | MEDIUM | Use sparingly, clear contracts | interface-design.md | | Concurrency | MEDIUM | Idiomatic channels/goroutines | concurrency.md | | Performance | LOW | Optimize deliberately when needed | performance.md |

How to Use

Read individual rule files for detailed explanations and code examples:

rules/formatting-gofmt.md
rules/naming-conventions.md
rules/error-handling-basics.md

Each rule file contains:

  • Impact level and description
  • Brief explanation of why it matters
  • Correct code examples with explanations
  • Incorrect code examples with explanations
  • Additional context and patterns

Progressive Application

Apply these guidelines progressively based on task scope:

New code: Apply all relevant guidelines from the start

Code review: Focus on critical issues (formatting, naming, errors) first

Refactoring: Improve incrementally, don't rewrite everything at once

Legacy code: Apply style to new code and touched code, not entire codebase

Additional Resources