Interface Over Conditionals

interface-over-conditionals

When behavior varies by some type/mode/flag, the reflex is if/elif/else (or switch) at each call site. That scatters the variation across the codebase, and every new variant means editing every branch. Instead: define one interface, write one implementation per variant, and inject/select the right implementation for the context. Having the right implementation IS the answer — the conditional disappears.

The move

1. Name the varying behavior as an interface (one method, or a small cohesive set).
2. One implementation per variant — each self-contained, independently testable.
3. Select once at the boundary (a factory / DI container / a map from key→impl) and hand the chosen impl down. Call sites just call impl.do(x) — no branching.

# instead of, at every call site:
if kind == "kalshi": ...elif kind == "coinbase": ...elif kind == "onchain": ...
# do:
strategy = REGISTRY[kind]   # select once
strategy.execute(ctx)       # call sites are branch-free

When this beats conditionals

• The same if kind == … ladder appears in MORE THAN ONE place → the variation is a missing abstraction.
• Adding a variant currently means editing several branches (open/closed violation).
• The branches are BEHAVIORAL (different algorithms), not a one-off data lookup.

When NOT to (keep it simple)

• A single, local, two-way branch that won't grow → just use the if. Don't manufacture an interface for one call site (that's over-engineering — respect the complexity budget).
• Pure DATA-driven selection (key → value/handler, no behavior) → a dispatch table/map is lighter; see map-dispatch-over-conditionals. This skill is its sibling for behavioral polymorphism.

DONE means

The varying behavior lives behind one interface with one impl per variant; selection happens once at a boundary; call sites are branch-free; adding a variant is adding a class + a registry entry, touching nothing else.

Cross-link: map-dispatch-over-conditionals (data-driven dispatch) · pairs with the code-taste cluster (no-nullable-params, fakes-over-mocks, early-return-over-else, enums-codify-behavior, complexity-budgets).