Clean Code, Clean Architecture & Clean Craftsmanship

A working guide to Robert C. Martin's principles. The aim is not to recite rules — it's to make code that the next person (often you, in six months) can read, change, and trust without fear. Messy code always slows you down; the only question is when. The fastest way to ship is to keep the code clean.

But clean means as simple as the problem allows, never as elaborate as possible. The single most common way to misapply these principles is to over-build — wrapping a 20-line script in layers it doesn't need. Read Right-size the solution below before you reach for any pattern.

This file (L1) is always active. Apply it to every function, class, or module you write or review. The deeper material lives in references/ — pull a file in only when the task calls for it (see Going deeper at the bottom).

Orient before you act

Before writing or changing code, answer five questions: