zig-expert — community zig-expert, zigttp, community, ide skills, Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf

v1.0.0
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About this Skill

Perfect for Systems Programming Agents needing low-level memory management and idiomatic Zig code expertise. Native Zig TypeScript runtime that started as port of mquickjs to Zig... and... grew up to something bigger

srdjan srdjan
[0]
[0]
Updated: 3/5/2026

Agent Capability Analysis

The zig-expert skill by srdjan is an open-source community AI agent skill for Claude Code and other IDE workflows, helping agents execute tasks with better context, repeatability, and domain-specific guidance.

Ideal Agent Persona

Perfect for Systems Programming Agents needing low-level memory management and idiomatic Zig code expertise.

Core Value

Empowers agents to write efficient and explicit Zig code, leveraging the Zen of Zig principles, such as communicate intent precisely and favor reading over writing, to optimize for compile-time evaluation and minimize undefined behaviors.

Capabilities Granted for zig-expert

Writing high-performance Zig applications
Optimizing Zig code for embedded systems
Debugging Zig programs with explicit intent

! Prerequisites & Limits

  • Requires native Zig environment
  • Zig programming language only
  • Focus on idiomatic Zig coding principles
Labs Demo

Browser Sandbox Environment

⚡️ Ready to unleash?

Experience this Agent in a zero-setup browser environment powered by WebContainers. No installation required.

Boot Container Sandbox

zig-expert

Install zig-expert, an AI agent skill for AI agent workflows and automation. Works with Claude Code, Cursor, and Windsurf with one-command setup.

SKILL.md
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Idiomatic Zig Programming

Expert guidance for writing idiomatic Zig code that embodies the Zen of Zig: explicit intent, no hidden control flow, and compile-time over runtime.

Zen of Zig (Core Philosophy)

These principles govern all idiomatic Zig code:

PrincipleImplication
Communicate intent preciselyExplicit code; APIs make requirements obvious
Edge cases matterNo undefined behaviors glossed over
Favor reading over writingOptimize for clarity and maintainability
One obvious wayAvoid multiple complex features for same task
Runtime crashes > bugsFail fast and loudly, never corrupt state silently
Compile errors > runtime crashesCatch issues at compile-time when possible
Resource deallocation must succeedDesign APIs with allocation failure in mind
Memory is a resourceManage memory as consciously as any other resource
No hidden control flowNo exceptions, no GC, no implicit allocations

FP Conceptual Parallels

Zig shares key concepts with functional programming:

FP ConceptZig Equivalent
Result/Either typeError union !T (either error or value)
Option/MaybeOptional ?T (nullable type)
ADTs / Sum typesTagged unions with union(enum)
Pattern matchingswitch with exhaustive handling
Explicit effectsAllocator/Io parameters (dependency injection)
Immutability preferenceconst by default, var only when needed
Pure functionsFunctions without hidden state or allocations

Workflow Decision Tree

  1. Declaring a binding? → Use const unless mutation required
  2. Function needs memory? → Accept Allocator parameter, never global alloc
  3. Function can fail? → Return error union !T, use try to propagate
  4. Handling an error? → Use catch with explicit handler or try to propagate
  5. Need cleanup on exit? → Use defer immediately after acquisition
  6. Cleanup only on error? → Use errdefer for conditional cleanup
  7. Need generic code? → Use comptime type parameters
  8. Compile-time known value? → Use comptime to evaluate at build time
  9. Calling C code? → Use @cImport for seamless FFI
  10. Need async I/O? → Pass Io interface, use io.async() and future.await()
  11. Optimizing hot path? → Consider data-oriented design (SoA vs AoS)

Essential Patterns

Error Unions (Result Type Equivalent)

zig
1const FileError = error{ NotFound, PermissionDenied, InvalidPath }; 2 3fn readConfig(path: []const u8) FileError!Config { 4 const file = std.fs.cwd().openFile(path, .{}) catch |err| { 5 return switch (err) { 6 error.FileNotFound => error.NotFound, 7 error.AccessDenied => error.PermissionDenied, 8 else => error.InvalidPath, 9 }; 10 }; 11 defer file.close(); 12 // ... parse config 13 return config; 14} 15 16// Propagate with try (like Rust's ?) 17pub fn main() !void { 18 const config = try readConfig("app.conf"); 19 // ... 20} 21 22// Handle explicitly with catch 23pub fn mainSafe() void { 24 const config = readConfig("app.conf") catch |err| { 25 std.debug.print("Failed: {}\n", .{err}); 26 return; 27 }; 28 // ... 29}

Allocator Pattern (Explicit Effects)

zig
1const std = @import("std"); 2 3// Function signature communicates: "I need to allocate" 4fn processData(allocator: std.mem.Allocator, input: []const u8) ![]u8 { 5 var result = try allocator.alloc(u8, input.len * 2); 6 errdefer allocator.free(result); // cleanup only on error path 7 8 // ... process into result 9 10 return result; // caller owns this memory 11} 12 13pub fn main() !void { 14 var gpa = std.heap.GeneralPurposeAllocator(.{}){}; 15 defer _ = gpa.deinit(); 16 const allocator = gpa.allocator(); 17 18 const data = try processData(allocator, "input"); 19 defer allocator.free(data); // caller responsible for cleanup 20}

Tagged Unions (ADTs / Sum Types)

zig
1const PaymentState = union(enum) { 2 pending: void, 3 processing: struct { transaction_id: []const u8 }, 4 completed: Receipt, 5 failed: PaymentError, 6 7 // Methods on the union 8 pub fn describe(self: PaymentState) []const u8 { 9 return switch (self) { 10 .pending => "Waiting for payment", 11 .processing => |p| p.transaction_id, 12 .completed => |r| r.summary, 13 .failed => |e| e.message, 14 }; 15 } 16}; 17 18// Exhaustive switch (compiler enforces all cases) 19fn handlePayment(state: PaymentState) void { 20 switch (state) { 21 .pending => startProcessing(), 22 .processing => |p| pollStatus(p.transaction_id), 23 .completed => |receipt| sendConfirmation(receipt), 24 .failed => |err| notifyFailure(err), 25 } 26}

Compile-Time Programming

zig
1// comptime function for generics 2fn max(comptime T: type, a: T, b: T) T { 3 return if (a > b) a else b; 4} 5 6// Compile-time computed constants 7const LOOKUP_TABLE = blk: { 8 var table: [256]u8 = undefined; 9 for (&table, 0..) |*entry, i| { 10 entry.* = @intCast((i * 7) % 256); 11 } 12 break :blk table; 13}; 14 15// Generic container (like TypeScript generics) 16fn ArrayList(comptime T: type) type { 17 return struct { 18 items: []T, 19 allocator: std.mem.Allocator, 20 21 const Self = @This(); 22 23 pub fn init(allocator: std.mem.Allocator) Self { 24 return .{ .items = &[_]T{}, .allocator = allocator }; 25 } 26 27 pub fn append(self: *Self, item: T) !void { 28 // ... 29 } 30 }; 31}

Resource Management with defer

zig
1fn processFile(allocator: std.mem.Allocator, path: []const u8) !void { 2 // Open file 3 const file = try std.fs.cwd().openFile(path, .{}); 4 defer file.close(); // ALWAYS runs on scope exit 5 6 // Allocate buffer 7 const buffer = try allocator.alloc(u8, 4096); 8 defer allocator.free(buffer); // cleanup guaranteed 9 10 // errdefer for conditional cleanup 11 var result = try allocator.alloc(u8, 1024); 12 errdefer allocator.free(result); // only on error 13 14 // If we reach here successfully, caller owns result 15 // ... 16}

Quick Reference

zig
1// Imports 2const std = @import("std"); 3 4// Variables 5const immutable: u32 = 42; // prefer const 6var mutable: u32 = 0; // only when needed 7 8// Optionals (?T) - like Option/Maybe 9var maybe_value: ?u32 = null; 10const unwrapped = maybe_value orelse 0; // default value 11const ptr = maybe_value orelse return error.Missing; // early return 12 13// Error unions (!T) - like Result/Either 14fn canFail() !u32 { return error.SomeError; } 15const value = try canFail(); // propagate error 16const safe = canFail() catch |err| handleError(err); // catch error 17 18// Slices (pointer + length, not null-terminated) 19const slice: []const u8 = "hello"; // string literal is []const u8 20const arr: [5]u8 = .{ 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 }; 21const sub = arr[1..3]; // slice of array 22 23// Iteration 24for (slice, 0..) |byte, index| { } // value and index 25for (slice) |byte| { } // value only 26 27// Switch (exhaustive, can capture) 28switch (tagged_union) { 29 .variant => |captured| doSomething(captured), 30 else => {}, // or handle all cases 31} 32 33// Comptime 34const SIZE = comptime blk: { break :blk 64; }; 35fn generic(comptime T: type, val: T) T { return val; }

Detailed References

Forbidden Patterns

❌ Never✅ Instead
Global allocator / hidden mallocPass Allocator explicitly
Exceptions / panic for errorsReturn error union !T
Null pointers without typeUse optional ?*T
Preprocessor macrosUse comptime and inline functions
C-style strings in Zig codeUse slices []const u8
Ignoring errors silentlyHandle with catch or propagate with try
var when const worksDefault to const, mutate only when necessary
Hidden control flowMake all branches explicit
OOP inheritance hierarchiesUse composition and tagged unions

FAQ & Installation Steps

These questions and steps mirror the structured data on this page for better search understanding.

? Frequently Asked Questions

What is zig-expert?

Perfect for Systems Programming Agents needing low-level memory management and idiomatic Zig code expertise. Native Zig TypeScript runtime that started as port of mquickjs to Zig... and... grew up to something bigger

How do I install zig-expert?

Run the command: npx killer-skills add srdjan/zigttp/zig-expert. It works with Cursor, Windsurf, VS Code, Claude Code, and 19+ other IDEs.

What are the use cases for zig-expert?

Key use cases include: Writing high-performance Zig applications, Optimizing Zig code for embedded systems, Debugging Zig programs with explicit intent.

Which IDEs are compatible with zig-expert?

This skill is compatible with Cursor, Windsurf, VS Code, Trae, Claude Code, OpenClaw, Aider, Codex, OpenCode, Goose, Cline, Roo Code, Kiro, Augment Code, Continue, GitHub Copilot, Sourcegraph Cody, and Amazon Q Developer. Use the Killer-Skills CLI for universal one-command installation.

Are there any limitations for zig-expert?

Requires native Zig environment. Zig programming language only. Focus on idiomatic Zig coding principles.

How To Install

  1. 1. Open your terminal

    Open the terminal or command line in your project directory.

  2. 2. Run the install command

    Run: npx killer-skills add srdjan/zigttp/zig-expert. The CLI will automatically detect your IDE or AI agent and configure the skill.

  3. 3. Start using the skill

    The skill is now active. Your AI agent can use zig-expert immediately in the current project.

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