search-first

To find existing code reusable components, audit your codebase by searching repository files, dependency manifests, and documentation to identify solutions before building a new module. This process reduces wasted engineering effort by ensuring teams discover existing implementations first.

To reduce code duplication in a software repository, apply a decision matrix using an adopt, extend, compose, or build hierarchy. This approach helps choose the least costly implementation path by prioritizing reusing existing libraries and patterns over creating new ones.

You need to search dependencies before implementing a new feature when you want to prevent duplicated engineering effort. Researching dependency manifests and documentation helps identify existing clients or modules to adopt or extend rather than building a separate implementation.

To document design decisions for extending or building new code, record the rationale for why a feature was adopted, extended, composed, or built. This documentation guidance prevents future duplication by clarifying the decision matrix behind choosing a specific implementation approach.

Yes, you can apply a decision matrix to choose between adopting or extending a library by evaluating the adopt, extend, compose, and build hierarchy. This matrix helps determine the least costly approach for software projects and dependency reviews.

Building new implementations wastes engineering effort when existing code, libraries, and patterns are available but undiscovered. By searching the codebase and dependencies first, teams can reuse existing solutions and prevent future duplication through documented decision rationale.