# Idiomatic Rugo > Guide to writing clean, idiomatic Rugo code. Load when writing .rugo scripts, reviewing Rugo code style, or learning Rugo patterns and best practices. Use when this capability is needed. - Skill: `tomevault-io/idiomatic-rugo` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 2 files) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add tomevault-io/idiomatic-rugo` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/tomevault-io/idiomatic-rugo/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/idiomatic-rugo --- # Idiomatic Rugo A guide to writing clean, expressive Rugo code. Rugo borrows Ruby's elegance, Go's compilation speed, and Bash's street smarts — compiled to native binaries. This skill covers idioms and patterns that experienced Rugo programmers reach for instinctively. Each chapter is available as a detailed reference. ## Chapters 1. [Expressive Basics](references/01-expressive-basics.md) — String interpolation, paren-free calls, constants, heredocs, and raw strings. 2. [Collections with Character](references/02-collections-with-character.md) — Hashes as lightweight objects, dot access, the factory pattern, array idioms, and iteration. 3. [Functions and Lambdas](references/03-functions-and-lambdas.md) — First-class functions, closures, higher-order patterns, dispatch tables, and composition. 4. [Graceful Failure](references/04-graceful-failure.md) — The three levels of `try/or`, raising errors, and building resilient code. 5. [Shell Power](references/05-shell-power.md) — Shell fallback, backtick capture, the pipe operator, and mixing paradigms. 6. [Concurrent Thinking](references/06-concurrent-thinking.md) — Spawn, parallel, timeouts, and task polling. 7. [Structuring Your Code](references/07-structuring-your-code.md) — Structs, modules, the Go bridge, and type introspection. 8. [Patterns in the Wild](references/08-patterns-in-the-wild.md) — Data pipelines, builder pattern, inline tests, and lessons from real libraries. ## The Rugo Philosophy 1. **Start simple.** Hashes before structs. Functions before classes. Graduate to more structure only when needed. 2. **Be explicit about failure.** Use `try/or` at the right level. Don't let errors propagate silently, and don't panic unnecessarily. 3. **Compose small pieces.** Collection methods, lambdas, and closures combine into powerful patterns without complex abstractions. 4. **Use the shell.** Don't rewrite `curl` or `grep` in Rugo. Shell out for what the shell does best, then process results in Rugo. 5. **Test where you code.** Inline `rats` blocks keep tests and implementation together. Use them. ## Quick Reference - **Interpolation:** `"Hello, #{name}!"` — any expression inside `#{}` - **Constants:** Uppercase start → assigned once: `PI = 3.14` - **Hash objects:** `{name: "Alice", age: 30}` with dot access `person.name` - **Factory pattern:** Functions returning hashes with lambda methods - **Error handling:** `try expr` / `try expr or default` / `try expr or err ... end` - **Shell capture:** `` user = `whoami` `` - **Pipes:** `echo "hello" | str.upper | puts` - **Concurrency:** `spawn expr` + `.value` / `parallel ... end` - **Imports:** `use "http"` (stdlib) / `import "strings"` (Go) / `require "file"` (user) - **Collection pipelines:** `.filter(fn(x) ... end).map(fn(x) ... end).join(", ")` - **Inline tests:** `rats "name" ... end` blocks, run with `rugo rats` - **Internal fields:** `__double_underscore__` convention for private state --- > Converted and distributed by [TomeVault](https://tomevault.io/claim/rubiojr) — claim your Tome and manage your conversions.