About library-selection
A library assessment workflow for Arduino firmware developers that prioritizes hardware, architecture, and toolchain constraints before comparing compatibility and impact. It includes version pinning, compile checks, and runtime behavior verification.
Key features
- 01Record board and toolchain constraints
- 02Check upstream version, license, and architecture support
- 03Compare API fit, footprint, and behavior
- 04Pin versions and document rationale
- 05Verify compile and runtime behavior
Use cases
- 01Assess compatibility across candidate libraries
- 02Check library support for a target board and framework
- 03Review dependency memory impact and licensing
- 04Maintain dependency provenance for device updates
Install
Copy the command and run it in a terminal.
npx skills add https:/After installing, type/library-selectionin Claude Code to confirm it loaded.
Details
From the project READMELibrary Selection
Treat a library as part of the firmware and hardware contract. A popular package that compiles for one architecture may still use incompatible pins, timers, memory, bus assumptions, or APIs on another.
Intake
Record exact board/module, architecture, Arduino core or vendor SDK, compiler, toolchain, required API, bus/pin constraints, memory budget, license boundary, update policy, and whether the device is connected or field-updatable.
Process
- Find the upstream source, release/tag, license, supported architectures, and framework instructions. Prefer primary repositories and current release notes.
- Compare candidate API fit, board variants, transitive dependencies, flash/ SRAM/heap impact, blocking behavior, concurrency, bus/pull-up assumptions, and error/recovery behavior.
- Check open issues and maintenance signals without treating stars or install count as compatibility proof.
- Select a pinned version, record provenance and rationale, and document unsupported board/framework branches.
- Run a minimal compile fixture, then a simulated or target behavior check.
Anti-rationalization
| Shortcut | Response |
|---|---|
| "It has many installs." | Verify architecture, core version, API, and hardware contract. |
| "The newest version is best." | Read release notes, compatibility, footprint, and regression history. |
| "The I2C scanner found it." | Test library initialization, register reads, timing, and error paths. |
| "It worked on AVR." | Recheck ESP32/S3/Pico architecture, pins, timers, and memory. |
| "The dependency is only a helper." | Include transitive code and license/security review. |
Verification
- Candidate comparison contains source, version, architecture, and license.
- Minimal compile output names the exact FQBN/environment and dependency resolution.
- Memory delta and one runtime/simulation behavior result are recorded.
- Connected devices have a dependency update and secret-handling plan.
Shared output contract
Use the shared Arduino skill contract: state assumptions, required tools and versions, implementation steps, tests/evidence by proof stage, known limitations, and recovery/security notes.