skyosev/simplicity-hunter-go

Simplicity Hunter

Audit Go code for structural complexity — places where logic is duplicated, abstractions don't earn their keep, control flow is deeper than it needs to be, or concerns are mixed. The goal: the simplest code that preserves intended behavior.

When to Use

• Reviewing new code for over-engineering or unnecessary indirection
• Reducing complexity after initial prototyping
• Enforcing reuse over addition before merging
• Preparing code for long-term maintainability
• Deduplicating logic across packages or tests

Core Principles

1. Default to delete. The best simplification is removal. If code can be deleted without changing behavior, delete it. If it can be replaced by an existing function, replace it.

2. One canonical path. When two implementations do the same thing, pick one and remove the other. Avoid "shared helper + keep both paths" unless required by genuinely different consumers.

3. Abstractions must earn their place. Reject new wrappers, managers, and factories unless they reduce total complexity through reuse. An interface that serves one call site and has one implementation is indirection, not simplification.

4. Flags are complexity multipliers. Each boolean parameter doubles the logic paths. Prefer one linear flow; if a flag is unavoidable, require sharp naming and a removal plan.

5. Inline the trivial. Pass-through wrappers, single-use helpers, and indirection layers that add no logic should be inlined. Measure value by what the wrapper adds, not by what it hides.

6. Separate concerns, don't mix them. A function that fetches data AND transforms it AND logs errors has three reasons to change. Split into focused functions with intent-revealing names.

7. Flatten, don't nest. Deep nesting (3+ levels) signals mixed concerns or missing early returns. Use guard clauses and early returns to keep the main path at low indentation.

8. Channels are not always the answer. A mutex protecting a map is simpler than a channel-based worker pattern for simple state. Use channels for communication, mutexes for state protection.

What to Hunt

1. Duplication

Repeated logic across functions, packages, or tests.

Signals:

• Two functions with near-identical bodies differing only in a value or branch
• Test files with copied setup/assertion blocks
• Multiple implementations of the same algorithm
• Identical error handling patterns repeated across handlers

Action: Choose one canonical implementation; delete the rest; extract shared logic only if it serves 2+ genuine consumers.

2. Unnecessary Abstractions

Wrappers, managers, registries, or factories that serve a single call site or add no logic.

Signals:

• An interface with a single implementation and no test doubles
• A function that delegates to one other function with no transformation
• A "manager" struct that wraps a single resource
• A factory function that returns only one type
• A package with one exported function that just calls another package

Action: Inline the abstraction. If it exists for testability, note that and keep if justified.

3. Dead Code Paths

Unreachable branches, unused internal functions, stale feature flags, and leftover alternate implementations.

Signals:

• if branches that can never be true given the input types or call sites
• Unexported functions with zero call sites (exported dead symbols are boundary-hunter territory)
• Feature flags that are always on/off
• Commented-out alternate implementations
• default cases in type switches that can never trigger (all types handled)

Action: Delete. If uncertain, flag with evidence of zero usage.

4. Over-Parameterized APIs

Functions with many parameters, boolean flags, or option structs that create a combinatorial explosion.

Signals:

• 5+ parameters, especially booleans
• Functions with if opts.X branches for most fields
• Option structs where most fields are zero-valued in all call sites
• Functional options pattern (With* functions) applied to functions with 1-2 options

Do not flag:

• 3 or fewer boolean parameters with well-descriptive names and ≤3 callers. The cure (a struct type + constructor) is heavier than the disease. Flag only when the boolean count causes real confusion or the caller count is high enough to justify the abstraction cost.

Action: Split into focused functions per use case, or reduce to the parameters actually used by callers. Reserve functional options for truly variadic configuration.

5. Interface Pollution

Interfaces created for theoretical extensibility rather than actual need.

Signals:

• Interface with one implementation and no test double
• Interface defined in the same package as its only implementation
• Interface that mirrors a concrete struct's full method set
• "Just in case" interfaces that have existed for months without a second implementation

Action: Remove the interface and use the concrete type. Introduce the interface when a second implementation or test double is actually needed.

6. Mixed Concerns

Single functions or types that handle multiple unrelated responsibilities.

Signals:

• A function that makes HTTP calls AND parses responses AND updates the database
• A handler that validates input AND applies business logic AND formats output
• Long functions (50+ lines) with distinct logical sections
• A struct with methods spanning different abstraction levels

Do not flag:

• Dispatcher/coordinator functions whose sole job is to route to the right handler based on a discriminant. A function that switches on a type and delegates each case to a separate function is a coordinator — that IS its single responsibility. Flag only when the dispatch function also contains substantial inline business logic in each case arm.

Action: Extract each concern into a named function. The parent function becomes a coordinator.

7. Complex Control Flow

Deep nesting, nested conditionals, and convoluted loops.

Signals:

• 3+ levels of nesting
• if/else if chains with 4+ branches (consider a switch or map lookup)
• Loop bodies with embedded conditionals
• Error handling that creates pyramid-shaped code (but note: if err != nil { return } guard clauses are idiomatic Go, not a nesting problem — flag only when error handling creates genuinely deep indentation)

Action: Flatten with guard clauses and early returns. Replace nested conditionals with switch statements or map lookups. Extract loop bodies into named functions when complex.

8. Channel and Goroutine Overuse

Concurrency patterns more complex than the problem requires.

Signals:

• Channel used where a mutex-protected variable would suffice
• Goroutine launched for a single synchronous operation
• Worker pool pattern for a bounded, predictable workload
• Channel of channels (metachannel)
• select with a single case and no timeout

Action: Use the simplest concurrency primitive that works. Mutex for state, channel for communication, goroutine for actual parallelism.

Audit Workflow

Phase 1: Gain Context

1. Resolve audit surface. The prompt may specify the scope as:
   • Diff: files changed on the current branch vs base (main/master)
   • Path: specific files, folders, or packages
   • Codebase: the entire project If unspecified, default to codebase. For diff mode, resolve the file list:

   BASE=$(git symbolic-ref refs/remotes/origin/HEAD 2>/dev/null | sed 's@^refs/remotes/origin/@@' || echo main)
   SCOPE=$(git diff --name-only $(git merge-base HEAD $BASE)...HEAD)
   

   Constrain all subsequent scans to the resolved surface.
2. Understand the project's existing helpers, utilities, and conventions.
3. Note any stated design decisions (e.g., intentional duplication for performance).

Phase 2: Scan for Complexity Signals

EXCLUDE='--glob !**/vendor/** --glob !**/testdata/**'

# Deep nesting (4+ indentation levels, tab-indented)
rg '^\t{4,}\S' --type go $EXCLUDE

# Boolean parameters
rg --pcre2 '\w+\s+bool[,)]' --type go $EXCLUDE --glob '!**/*_test.go'

# Functions with many parameters
rg --pcre2 'func\s+(\(\w+\s+\*?\w+\)\s+)?\w+\([^)]{80,}\)' --type go $EXCLUDE

# Interfaces with single implementation
rg 'type\s+\w+\s+interface' --type go $EXCLUDE

# Unused unexported functions (candidates)
rg 'func\s+[a-z]\w+\(' --type go $EXCLUDE --glob '!**/*_test.go'

# Channel complexity
rg 'chan\s+chan|<-\s*<-' --type go $EXCLUDE

# Goroutine launches
rg 'go\s+func|go\s+\w+\(' --type go $EXCLUDE

Phase 3: Scan for Duplication

1. Identify repeated patterns across files using targeted searches.
2. Check test files for copied setup and assertion blocks.
3. Look for multiple implementations of the same logic with minor variations.

Phase 4: Evaluate Each Finding

For each complexity signal, determine:

• Is this genuinely unnecessary, or does it serve a purpose?
• What is the simplest change that eliminates it?
• Does the simplification break any exported API? If so, flag but default to follow-up.

Phase 5: Produce Report

Output Format

Save as YYYY-MM-DD-simplicity-hunter-audit-{$LLM-name}.md in the project's docs folder (or project root if no docs folder exists).

# Simplicity Hunter Audit — {date}

## Scope

- Surface: {diff / path / codebase}
- Files: {count or list}
- Exclusions: {list}

## Findings

### Duplication

| # | Locations | Description | Action |
| - | --------- | ----------- | ------ |
| 1 | file:line, file:line | Near-identical validation logic | Deduplicate into shared function |

### Unnecessary Abstractions

| # | Location | Abstraction | Consumers | Action |
| - | -------- | ----------- | --------- | ------ |
| 1 | file:line | `ConfigManager` struct | 1 | Inline |

### Dead Code Paths

| # | Location | Code | Evidence | Action |
| - | -------- | ---- | -------- | ------ |
| 1 | file:line | `legacyHandler()` | 0 internal call sites | Delete |

### Over-Parameterized APIs

| # | Location | Function | Params | Action |
| - | -------- | -------- | ------ | ------ |
| 1 | file:line | `Render(a, b, c, d, e bool)` | 5 booleans | Split by use case |

### Interface Pollution

| # | Location | Interface | Implementations | Action |
| - | -------- | --------- | --------------- | ------ |
| 1 | file:line | `Processor` | 1 (no test doubles) | Remove, use concrete type |

### Mixed Concerns

| # | Location | Function | Concerns | Action |
| - | -------- | -------- | -------- | ------ |
| 1 | file:line | `ProcessOrder()` | fetch + transform + log | Extract into 3 functions |

### Complex Control Flow

| # | Location | Pattern | Depth | Action |
| - | -------- | ------- | ----- | ------ |
| 1 | file:line | Nested if/else | 4 | Flatten with guard clauses |

### Channel/Goroutine Overuse

| # | Location | Pattern | Simpler Alternative | Action |
| - | -------- | ------- | ------------------- | ------ |
| 1 | file:line | Channel for shared counter | `sync/atomic` | Replace |

## Recommendations (Priority Order)

1. **Must-fix**: {high-impact duplication, dead code with confidence}
2. **Should-fix**: {unnecessary abstractions, over-parameterized APIs, interface pollution}
3. **Consider**: {control flow improvements, concern separation, channel simplification}

Operating Constraints

• No code edits. This skill produces an audit report only. Implementation is a separate step.
• Scope: structural complexity only. Do not flag type safety (→ invariant-hunter-go), type design (→ type-hunter-go), package boundary issues (→ boundary-hunter-go), interface design (→ solid-hunter-go), missing documentation (→ doc-hunter-go), security (→ security-hunter-go), test quality (→ test-hunter-go), or cosmetic style (→ slop-hunter-go). If a finding doesn't answer "is this simpler than it could be?", it doesn't belong here.
• Evidence required. Every finding must cite file/path.go:line with the exact code.
• Reuse over addition. When recommending a fix, prefer existing functions or deletion over new code.
• Preserve behavior. Never recommend changes that alter what the code does, only how it's structured.
• Pragmatism. Not every abstraction is wrong. Flag, assess, and acknowledge intentional complexity. If a simplification breaks exported APIs or backwards compatibility, call it out and default to follow-up.
• Respect Go idioms. Go's explicit error handling creates visual repetition that is idiomatic, not duplication. Don't flag if err != nil { return err } as complexity — flag it only when the error handling is genuinely doing different things that could be unified.