Format & Standardize Skill

Purpose

Ensures the generated deliverable follows consistent formatting, style, and structure standards. This is the "polish" step that makes work look professional and maintainable.

What to Do

1. Review the generated deliverable
2. Load their standards to understand formatting preferences
3. Apply standardization:
   • Code formatting (indentation, naming, structure)
   • Documentation formatting (headers, lists, spacing)
   • Consistency across all elements
   • Professional appearance
4. Use their tools/conventions if specified:
   • Example: "Use Prettier for code"
   • Example: "Use Markdown standard headers"
5. Verify complete consistency before delivery

Format Checks by Type

Code Features

• Consistent indentation (spaces/tabs)
• Naming conventions (camelCase, snake_case, etc.)
• Consistent spacing around operators and braces
• Comments formatted consistently
• Imports/exports organized
• Line length consistent
• Semicolons or no-semicolons applied consistently
• Quotes style (single/double) consistent

Documentation

• Consistent header levels (# ## ###)
• Consistent list formatting (bullets vs numbers)
• Code blocks properly formatted
• Links properly formatted
• Consistent spacing between sections
• Table formatting (if applicable)
• Consistent punctuation

Refactoring

• Before code formatted consistently
• After code formatted consistently
• Explanations formatted clearly
• Highlight differences clearly

Test Suite

• Test file organization
• Test function naming consistent
• Assertion formatting consistent
• Setup/teardown indentation
• Comments consistent format

Content Creation

• Section headers consistent
• Example formatting consistent
• List formatting consistent
• Tone/voice consistent throughout
• Line breaks for readability

Process

1. Take the generated deliverable
2. Load their saved standards using StandardsRepository (look for formatting preferences)
3. Apply standardization rules
4. Format code/text with appropriate tools:
   • Code: ESLint, Prettier, or manual formatting
   • Docs: Markdown standards
   • Content: Style guide consistency
5. Do a final pass for consistency
6. Return the formatted output

Loading Standards

Use StandardsRepository to access formatting preferences:

const standards = standardsRepository.getStandards(context.projectType)
if (standards && standards.commonPatterns) {
  // Apply their formatting preferences from commonPatterns
  standards.commonPatterns.forEach(pattern => {
    // Example: "Use 2-space indentation", "Sort imports alphabetically"
    applyFormattingPattern(pattern)
  })
}

See .claude/lib/standards-repository.md for interface details.

Output Format

# Formatting Applied

## Standards Used
- [First formatting standard]
- [Second formatting standard]
- [Tools/conventions applied]

## Changes Made
- [List of formatting changes applied]
- [Example: "Sorted imports alphabetically"]
- [Example: "Applied 2-space indentation"]

## The Formatted Deliverable
[Complete formatted output, ready to use]

## Validation
- Consistent formatting: ✓
- Professional appearance: ✓
- Ready for review/delivery: ✓

Success Criteria

✓ All formatting is consistent ✓ Follows user's standards ✓ Professional appearance ✓ Ready for code review or publication ✓ No formatting inconsistencies remain

Common Formatting Rules

For Code:

• Use their linter (ESLint, Pylint, etc.)
• Apply their code formatter (Prettier, Black, etc.)
• Follow their naming conventions
• Consistent indentation throughout

For Documentation:

• Consistent markdown formatting
• Proper header hierarchy
• Consistent code block formatting
• Proper link formatting

For Content:

• Consistent section structure
• Consistent list formatting
• Professional tone throughout
• Proper punctuation and capitalization

Example

Input (Before Formatting):

const MyComponent = ( props ) => {
  return (
    <div>
      { props.title }
    </div>
  );
};

export default MyComponent

After Formatting (assuming standard React conventions):

const MyComponent = (props) => {
  return (
    <div>
      {props.title}
    </div>
  );
};

export default MyComponent;

Changes Made:

• Removed spaces in function parameters
• Removed spaces around JSX expression braces
• Added semicolon
• Consistent indentation

Notes

• If user defined formatting preferences in standards, USE THEM
• Professional formatting increases perceived quality significantly
• Consistency matters more than the specific choice (spaces vs tabs - pick one and stick with it)
• This step makes the deliverable look "production-ready"