# Fredrikaverpil Dotfiles Golang Style

> Go Coding Conventions

- Skill: `tomevault-io/fredrikaverpil-dotfiles-golang-style` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 2 files)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add tomevault-io/fredrikaverpil-dotfiles-golang-style`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/tomevault-io/fredrikaverpil-dotfiles-golang-style/raw
- Safety review: pending (external: skill-scanner PASS, skillspector PASS)
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: tomevault-io (https://skillmd.com/u/tomevault-io)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/tomevault-io/fredrikaverpil-dotfiles-golang-style

---




# Go Coding Conventions

## Proverbs

Try to follow the proverbs:

> Go Proverbs
> Simple, Poetic, Pithy
> Don't communicate by sharing memory, share memory by communicating.
> Concurrency is not parallelism.
> Channels orchestrate; mutexes serialize.
> The bigger the interface, the weaker the abstraction.
> Make the zero value useful.
> interface{} says nothing.
> Gofmt's style is no one's favorite, yet gofmt is everyone's favorite.
> A little copying is better than a little dependency.
> Syscall must always be guarded with build tags.
> Cgo must always be guarded with build tags.
> Cgo is not Go.
> With the unsafe package there are no guarantees.
> Clear is better than clever.
> Reflection is never clear.
> Errors are values.
> Don't just check errors, handle them gracefully.
> Design the architecture, name the components, document the details.
> Documentation is for users.
> Don't panic.

Follow these conventions strictly when writing Go code.

## Happy Path Coding

Structure code so the successful path flows straight down. Handle errors
immediately, then continue with main logic.

```go
// Correct: happy path flows down.
func ProcessUser(id string) (*User, error) {
    user, err := db.GetUser(id)
    if err != nil {
        return nil, fmt.Errorf("get user %s: %w", id, err)
    }

    if err := user.Validate(); err != nil {
        return nil, fmt.Errorf("validate user %s: %w", id, err)
    }

    return user, nil
}

// Wrong: main logic nested inside conditions.
func ProcessUser(id string) (*User, error) {
    user, err := db.GetUser(id)
    if err == nil {
        if err := user.Validate(); err == nil {
            return user, nil
        } else {
            return nil, err
        }
    }
    return nil, err
}
```

## Error Wrapping

Always wrap errors with context using `%w`. Include the operation and relevant
identifiers.

```go
// Correct: wrapped with context.
if err != nil {
    return fmt.Errorf("create order for customer %s: %w", customerID, err)
}

// Wrong: no context.
if err != nil {
    return err
}
```

## Sentinel Errors

Define package-level sentinel errors for expected error conditions. Use
`errors.Is()` to check.

```go
// Define at package level.
var (
    ErrNotFound     = errors.New("not found")
    ErrUnauthorized = errors.New("unauthorized")
    ErrInvalidInput = errors.New("invalid input")
)

// Return sentinel errors.
func GetUser(id string) (*User, error) {
    user := db.Find(id)
    if user == nil {
        return nil, ErrNotFound
    }
    return user, nil
}

// Check with errors.Is().
user, err := GetUser(id)
if errors.Is(err, ErrNotFound) {
    // Handle not found case.
}
```

## Comments

All comments end with a period.

```go
// ProcessOrder handles order creation and validation.
func ProcessOrder(o *Order) error {
    // Validate the order before processing.
    if err := o.Validate(); err != nil {
        return err
    }
    // Continue with order processing.
    return nil
}
```

## Naming Conventions

Never use Go's predeclared identifiers as variable or parameter names. These
include built-in functions and constants that can be shadowed but should not be.

```go
// Wrong: shadows built-in identifiers.
func process(new string, len int, make bool) error {
    copy := "data"
    return nil
}

// Correct: use descriptive names instead.
func process(name string, length int, shouldCreate bool) error {
    dataCopy := "data"
    return nil
}
```

Predeclared identifiers to avoid:

- Functions: `new`, `make`, `len`, `cap`, `append`, `copy`, `delete`, `close`,
  `panic`, `recover`, `print`, `println`, `complex`, `real`, `imag`, `clear`,
  `min`, `max`
- Constants: `true`, `false`, `iota`, `nil`
- Types: `error`, `bool`, `string`, `int`, `int8`, `int16`, `int32`, `int64`,
  `uint`, `uint8`, `uint16`, `uint32`, `uint64`, `uintptr`, `float32`,
  `float64`, `complex64`, `complex128`, `byte`, `rune`, `any`, `comparable`

## Line Length

Maximum line length is 120 characters. Break long lines at logical points.

```go
// Correct: break at logical points.
func ProcessOrderWithValidation(
    ctx context.Context,
    order *Order,
    validator OrderValidator,
) (*Result, error) {
    return nil, fmt.Errorf(
        "process order %s for customer %s: %w",
        order.ID,
        order.CustomerID,
        err,
    )
}
```

## Documentation Lookup

Use `go doc` to look up standard library and package documentation:

```bash
go doc fmt.Errorf
go doc errors.Is
go doc context
```

## Einride

If the project is under the Einride organization, always use the Makefiles in
the project which are generated by Sage (the `.sage` folder).

---
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<!-- tomevault:4.0:skill_md:2026-04-11 -->