Error Messages

Expert skill for designing and implementing high-quality compiler error messages

509 stars

Best use case

Error Messages is best used when you need a repeatable AI agent workflow instead of a one-off prompt.

Expert skill for designing and implementing high-quality compiler error messages

Teams using Error Messages should expect a more consistent output, faster repeated execution, less prompt rewriting.

When to use this skill

  • You want a reusable workflow that can be run more than once with consistent structure.

When not to use this skill

  • You only need a quick one-off answer and do not need a reusable workflow.
  • You cannot install or maintain the underlying files, dependencies, or repository context.

Installation

Claude Code / Cursor / Codex

$curl -o ~/.claude/skills/error-messages/SKILL.md --create-dirs "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/a5c-ai/babysitter/main/library/specializations/programming-languages/skills/error-messages/SKILL.md"

Manual Installation

  1. Download SKILL.md from GitHub
  2. Place it in .claude/skills/error-messages/SKILL.md inside your project
  3. Restart your AI agent — it will auto-discover the skill

How Error Messages Compares

Feature / AgentError MessagesStandard Approach
Platform SupportNot specifiedLimited / Varies
Context Awareness High Baseline
Installation ComplexityUnknownN/A

Frequently Asked Questions

What does this skill do?

Expert skill for designing and implementing high-quality compiler error messages

Where can I find the source code?

You can find the source code on GitHub using the link provided at the top of the page.

SKILL.md Source

# Error Messages Skill

## Overview

Expert skill for designing and implementing high-quality compiler error messages.

## Capabilities

- Design clear, actionable error message templates
- Implement source context display with underlines
- Generate fix suggestions and quick fixes
- Handle error cascades and suppression
- Implement multi-span error annotations
- Support machine-readable error output (JSON)
- Implement color/styled terminal output
- Design error recovery strategies for better diagnostics

## Target Processes

- error-message-enhancement.js
- parser-development.js
- type-system-implementation.js
- semantic-analysis.js
- lsp-server-implementation.js

## Dependencies

Elm/Rust error message guidelines

## Usage Guidelines

1. **Clarity**: Make error messages clear and actionable
2. **Context**: Show relevant source code context with precise location
3. **Suggestions**: Provide fix suggestions when possible
4. **Cascades**: Suppress cascading errors to avoid overwhelming users
5. **Machine-Readable**: Support JSON output for tooling integration

## Output Schema

```json
{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "errorFormat": {
      "type": "string",
      "enum": ["human", "json", "sarif"]
    },
    "features": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": { "type": "string" }
    },
    "colorSupport": { "type": "boolean" },
    "generatedFiles": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": { "type": "string" }
    }
  }
}
```

Related Skills

error-code-catalog

509
from a5c-ai/babysitter

Manage and document SDK error codes and messages

actionable-error-formatter

509
from a5c-ai/babysitter

Format errors with actionable fix suggestions and documentation links

mitiq-error-mitigator

509
from a5c-ai/babysitter

Error mitigation skill using Mitiq for NISQ device noise reduction

mcp-error-code-mapper

509
from a5c-ai/babysitter

Map application errors to MCP error codes with proper messages, error types, and recovery suggestions.

Error Logging

509
from a5c-ai/babysitter

Log all errors with full context, detect patterns, and suggest approach mutations to avoid repeated failures.

process-builder

509
from a5c-ai/babysitter

Scaffold new babysitter process definitions following SDK patterns, proper structure, and best practices. Guides the 3-phase workflow from research to implementation.

Workflow & Productivity

babysitter

509
from a5c-ai/babysitter

Orchestrate via @babysitter. Use this skill when asked to babysit a run, orchestrate a process or whenever it is called explicitly. (babysit, babysitter, orchestrate, orchestrate a run, workflow, etc.)

yolo

509
from a5c-ai/babysitter

Run Babysitter autonomously with minimal manual interruption.

user-install

509
from a5c-ai/babysitter

Install the user-level Babysitter Codex setup.

team-install

509
from a5c-ai/babysitter

Install the team-pinned Babysitter Codex workspace setup.

retrospect

509
from a5c-ai/babysitter

Summarize or retrospect on a completed Babysitter run.

resume

509
from a5c-ai/babysitter

Resume an existing Babysitter run from Codex.