michaelalber/design-an-interface
skills/design-an-interface/SKILL.md
Applies "Design It Twice" from APOSD: generates two radically different interface designs for the same problem, then compares them on information hiding, complexity, and cohesion before recommending one. Use when designing a new API, module boundary, or class interface, or asked to "design the interface", "apply design it twice", or "compare interface designs". Ported from https://github.com/mattpocock/skills (Matt Pocock).
development
Updated Apr 26, 2026
$ install --global
skillsauthnpx skillsauth add michaelalber/ai-toolkit design-an-interfaceInstall this skill globally with one command. Works with Claude Code, Cursor, and Windsurf.
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TrivyContainer and dependency vulnerability scanner
95%
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SemgrepStatic code analysis for vulnerabilities
95%
Clean
mcp-scan (Snyk)Model Context Protocol security validation
95%
Skipped
Snyk (dep)Open source security scanning
50%
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Socket.devSupply chain security analysis
50%
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VirusTotalMulti-engine malware detection
50%
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CrowdStrikeAdvanced threat intelligence
50%
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OSV-ScannerOpen Source Vulnerability database check
50%
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OWASP Dep-Check
50%
Last scanned: Apr 26, 2026, 12:52 PM106.2s3 files scanned
SKILL.md
- name:
- design-an-interface
- description:
- >
- Applies "Design It Twice" from APOSD:
- generates two radically different interface
- Ported from https:
- //github.com/mattpocock/skills (Matt Pocock).
Apply the "Design It Twice" principle from A Philosophy of Software Design (Ousterhout).
Protocol
1. Clarify the problem
Confirm:
- What does this interface need to do?
- Who are the consumers? How will they call it?
- What complexity must it hide from callers?
2. Generate Design A — narrow and deep:
- Expose only what consumers absolutely need
- Push complexity down into the implementation
- Few methods, each with a clear, complete purpose
3. Generate Design B — different decomposition:
- Choose a meaningfully different abstraction boundary
- May be more explicit, more composable, or more granular
- Must not be a minor variation of Design A
4. Compare on these dimensions:
| Dimension | Design A | Design B | |-----------|----------|----------| | Information hiding (1–5, higher=better) | | | | Method count (lower=simpler) | | | | Conceptual complexity (1–5, lower=better) | | | | Cohesion (1–5, higher=better) | | | | Error surface (1–5, lower=better) | | | | Total | | |
See references/aposd-principles.md for scoring guidance on each dimension.
5. Recommend — state which design is better and why, citing specific APOSD principles. If scores are close, propose a hybrid that takes the best of each.
6. Validate — ask: "Any constraint or use case I missed that would change this?"
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