GitHub Search

NO BUILDING FROM SCRATCH WITHOUT SEARCHING GITHUB FIRST

digraph github_search_gate {
    rankdir=TB;
    start [label="Task: Build something", shape=doublecircle];
    search [label="SEARCH\nGitHub, registries,\nopen-source ecosystems", shape=box];
    found [label="Relevant repos found?", shape=diamond];
    evaluate [label="EVALUATE\nStars, maintenance,\ncode quality, license, fit", shape=box];
    usable [label="Directly usable\nas a dependency?", shape=diamond];
    install [label="INSTALL\nAdd as dependency", shape=box style=filled fillcolor=lightgreen];
    harvestable [label="Harvestable\npatterns?", shape=diamond];
    harvest [label="HARVEST\nExtract patterns, adapt\nto your codebase", shape=box style=filled fillcolor=lightyellow];
    studyable [label="Useful as a\nlearning reference?", shape=diamond];
    study [label="STUDY\nAbsorb architecture,\nthen build your own", shape=box];
    build [label="BUILD FROM SCRATCH\nRecord: searched, nothing fit", shape=box];
    record [label="Document search queries\nand findings", shape=box];

    start -> search;
    search -> found;
    found -> evaluate [label="yes"];
    found -> record [label="no"];
    record -> build;
    evaluate -> usable;
    usable -> install [label="yes - strong fit"];
    usable -> harvestable [label="no - too heavy\nor wrong scope"];
    harvestable -> harvest [label="yes - valuable patterns"];
    harvestable -> studyable [label="no - different paradigm"];
    studyable -> study [label="yes - learn from it"];
    studyable -> build [label="no - genuinely nothing relevant"];
}

1. GitHub Search: github.com/search (code, repositories, topics)
2. GitHub Topics: github.com/topics/{topic}
3. WebSearch: "github {what you need} {tech stack}"
4. Package registries: npmjs.com, pypi.org, crates.io, rubygems.org, pkg.go.dev
5. Curated lists: awesome-{topic} repositories on GitHub
6. Framework ecosystems: official plugin/extension directories

digraph search_scope {
    "What am I building?" [shape=diamond];
    "Complete application?" [shape=diamond];
    "Feature or module?" [shape=diamond];
    "Search for full repos" [shape=box];
    "Search for libraries + example repos" [shape=box];
    "Search for code snippets + patterns" [shape=box];

    "What am I building?" -> "Complete application?" [label="assess"];
    "Complete application?" -> "Search for full repos" [label="yes"];
    "Complete application?" -> "Feature or module?" [label="no"];
    "Feature or module?" -> "Search for libraries + example repos" [label="yes"];
    "Feature or module?" -> "Search for code snippets + patterns" [label="no"];
}

For each candidate repository:

1. STARS & FORKS: Gauge community trust (100+ stars is a reasonable floor)
2. LAST COMMIT: Anything older than 18 months is a maintenance risk
3. OPEN ISSUES: High count with no maintainer replies signals abandonment
4. LICENSE FILE: No license means you cannot legally use it
5. TEST DIRECTORY: No tests means no confidence in correctness
6. README QUALITY: Poor docs usually correlate with poor internal structure
7. DEPENDENCIES: Check for bloated or unmaintained transitive deps
8. RELEASE CADENCE: Regular releases indicate ongoing investment

FROM the repository, extract:
- Architectural patterns (how they organized the project)
- Algorithm implementations (how they solved the hard parts)
- Data models (how they structured domain entities)
- Interface designs (how they shaped the public API)
- Error handling approaches (how they manage edge cases)
- Test strategies (how they verify similar functionality)

DO NOT copy-paste entire files.
DO extract the pattern and rewrite for your:
- Technology stack
- Naming conventions
- Design system (for UI code)
- Architectural layering
- Internal codebase conventions (use godmode:codebase-research to find them)

In your codebase or documentation, note:
"Approach inspired by github.com/author/repo - [what was adapted]"