Platform Notes

• Optional helper plugins may help in some environments, but they must not be treated as required for this skill.

Jetpack Compose UI Standards

Acknowledgement: Shared by Peter Bamuhigire, techguypeter.com, +256 784 464178.

Use When

• Jetpack Compose UI standards for beautiful, sleek, minimalistic Android apps. Enforces Material 3 design, unidirectional data flow, state hoisting, consistent theming, smooth animations, and performance patterns. Use when building or reviewing...
• The task needs reusable judgment, domain constraints, or a proven workflow rather than ad hoc advice.

Do Not Use When

• The task is unrelated to jetpack-compose-ui or would be better handled by a more specific companion skill.
• The request only needs a trivial answer and none of this skill's constraints or references materially help.

Required Inputs

• Gather relevant project context, constraints, and the concrete problem to solve; load references only as needed.
• Confirm the desired deliverable: design, code, review, migration plan, audit, or documentation.

Workflow

• Read this SKILL.md first, then load only the referenced deep-dive files that are necessary for the task.
• Apply the ordered guidance, checklists, and decision rules in this skill instead of cherry-picking isolated snippets.
• Produce the deliverable with assumptions, risks, and follow-up work made explicit when they matter.

Quality Standards

• Keep outputs execution-oriented, concise, and aligned with the repository's baseline engineering standards.
• Preserve compatibility with existing project conventions unless the skill explicitly requires a stronger standard.
• Prefer deterministic, reviewable steps over vague advice or tool-specific magic.

Anti-Patterns

• Treating examples as copy-paste truth without checking fit, constraints, or failure modes.
• Loading every reference file by default instead of using progressive disclosure.

Outputs

• A concrete result that fits the task: implementation guidance, review findings, architecture decisions, templates, or generated artifacts.
• Clear assumptions, tradeoffs, or unresolved gaps when the task cannot be completed from available context alone.
• References used, companion skills, or follow-up actions when they materially improve execution.

Evidence Produced

Category	Artifact	Format	Example
UX quality	Compose screen audit	Markdown doc reviewing layout, theming, semantics, and accessibility findings	docs/android/compose-audit-checkout.md

References

• Use the references/ directory for deep detail after reading the core workflow below.

Design Philosophy

Goal: Every screen should feel beautiful, sleek, fast, and effortless to use.

Core Design Principles

1. Minimalism over decoration - Remove anything that doesn't serve the user
2. Consistency over novelty - Same patterns across every app screen
3. Visible affordances over guesswork - Interactive elements must look tappable without relying on motion or discovery
4. Whitespace is a feature - Generous spacing creates visual breathing room
5. Speed is UX - If it feels slow, it's broken regardless of how it looks
6. Content-first hierarchy - Important information is immediately visible
7. Touch-friendly targets - Minimum 48dp for all interactive elements
8. Adaptive by default - Every screen MUST work on phones AND tablets
9. Colour and first impressions — Users form visual judgments quickly; use visuals and colour to communicate primary meaning instantly.

Enterprise Mobile UX Principles

Mobile is NOT a scaled-down desktop app. Design from the ground up for mobile users, not as a replica:

• Task-oriented design - Mobile users have specific goals and limited time. Minimize steps/taps to task completion. Focus on one primary action per screen.
• Value over features - Include only functionality that delivers genuine user value. Eliminate features that require users to rework on desktop later or provide insufficient context for decisions.
• UX before UI aesthetics - Prioritize (1) backend connectivity, (2) offline support, (3) performance, (4) reliability, then UI polish. Users tolerate degraded visuals if the app works and is responsive.
• Offline-first mentality - Design flows that work without connectivity. Sync back when online. Users won't use an app that breaks without internet.

Task Completion Efficiency (Enterprise)

For enterprise mobile apps, measure success by business impact, not UI novelty:

• Minimize interaction steps - Every tap/swipe is friction. Test with actual users and eliminate unnecessary screens.
• Show decision-enabling data - Always provide enough context (but not overload). E.g., for field agents: appointment count + status, not monthly analysis.
• Reduce cognitive load - Make correct actions obvious. Use clear labels, consistent patterns, and logical groupings.
• Measure KPIs, not vanity metrics - Define what success looks like (reduced wait times, faster task completion, fewer support requests). Avoid metrics like "time in app" or "login count."

Visual Standards

Element	Standard
Corner radius	12-16dp for cards, 8dp for inputs, 24dp for FABs
Card elevation	0-2dp (subtle shadows, never heavy)
Content padding	16dp horizontal, 8-16dp vertical between items
Screen padding	16dp compact, 24dp medium, 32dp expanded
Touch targets	Minimum 48dp height/width
Icon size	24dp standard, 20dp in buttons, 48dp for empty states
Typography scale	Use Material 3 type scale exclusively

Colour rules (Paduraru):

• Never pure black for text: use Color(0xFF1A1A1A) or Material 3 MaterialTheme.colorScheme.onBackground
• Never pure white on dark backgrounds: use Color(0xFFF5F5F5) or Material 3 MaterialTheme.colorScheme.background
• Body text line height = font size × 1.6 (e.g., 16sp font → 26sp line height)

Icon Policy (Required): Use custom PNG icons with painterResource(R.drawable.<name>). Maintain PROJECT_ICONS.md per android-custom-icons.

Report Table Policy (Required): Any report that can exceed 25 rows must render as a table (see android-report-tables).

Compact Number Formatting (Required): KPI cards, summary tiles, and stat chips MUST use CurrencyFormatter.formatStat() for monetary values. Values >= 1,000,000 display as compact (e.g. "32.45M"). Values < 1,000,000 display as full format ("999,999.00"). Table rows and list items MUST use CurrencyFormatter.format() (always full format). Chart axis labels use CurrencyFormatter.formatCompact() (e.g. "1.2M", "12.3K").

Additional Guidance

Extended guidance for jetpack-compose-ui was moved to references/skill-deep-dive.md to keep this entrypoint compact and fast to load.

Use that deep dive for:

• Quick Reference
• Core Compose Principles
• Composable Function Signature
• Screen Architecture Pattern
• Responsive & Adaptive Design (MANDATORY)
• Theming (Consistent Across Apps)
• Essential UI Patterns
• Pull-to-Refresh (MANDATORY)
• Performance Essentials
• Animation Standards
• Patterns & Anti-Patterns
• Integration with Other Skills
• Additional deep-dive sections continue in the reference file.