Build — Ship Features

Principles

1. Make it work, make it right, make it fast — in that order.
2. Read before write. Understand existing patterns before adding code.
3. Smallest diff wins. Don't refactor what you don't need to touch.
4. Delete > comment out. Dead code is noise.

Decision Framework

1. Does this need code, or can I configure it?
2. Is there an existing pattern I should follow?
3. What's the simplest thing that could work?

Step 0: Pick a Design Pattern

Stack: TypeScript

Stack: Python

Code Patterns

Every component handles 4 states

1. Empty — no data yet
2. Loading — fetching
3. Error — something failed
4. Loaded — data available

API routes (TypeScript)

• Validate input with Zod at the boundary
• Return consistent shape:

  { data }

  or

  { error }

• Auth check before business logic

API routes (Python)

• Validate with Pydantic models on request/response
• Return consistent shape:

  {"data": ...}

  or

  {"error": ...}

• Use Depends() for auth, DB sessions, shared logic

Database

• Migrations for schema changes, never manual SQL
• Transactions for multi-table writes
• Index columns used in WHERE and JOIN

Security Defaults

• Validate all user input (Zod / Pydantic)
• Auth check on every protected route
• Parameterized queries (never string concat SQL)
• Secrets in env vars, never in code
• HTTPS everywhere

When Done

/gate