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diagram-design/references/type-state.md
T
Cathryn Lavery 53bd8dde0f Initial release: diagram-design v1.0
Thirteen editorial diagram types (architecture, flowchart, sequence,
state, ER, timeline, swimlane, quadrant, nested, tree, layers, venn,
pyramid) as self-contained HTML files with inline SVG.

Progressive disclosure: lean SKILL.md points to per-type references.
Neutral stone+rust default skin, first-run gate that prompts users
to customize the style guide from their own website, URL-based
onboarding, annotation-callout primitive, sketchy filter variant,
live gallery at assets/index.html.
2026-04-16 13:30:53 -05:00

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State Machine

Best for: finite state logic — order status, auth state, connection lifecycle, form wizard, job queue status.

Layout conventions

  • States are rounded rectangles (rx=8), labeled in Geist.
  • Start: filled ink dot (r=6). End: ringed dot (outer r=8 outline, inner filled r=5).
  • Transitions: curved arrows labeled in Geist Mono as event [guard] / action (omit sections you don't need).
  • Self-loops curve above the state.
  • Orient along the dominant flow direction (left→right or top→down); rearrange before crossing transitions.
  • Coral on the state the reader should notice — typically the error state, or "happy completion".

Anti-patterns

  • More transitions than states × 2 → likely two state machines.
  • "From any state" transitions drawn from every state — use a single annotation (* → Error on timeout) instead.
  • Unlabeled transitions (the whole point is what triggers this).

Examples

  • assets/example-state.html — minimal light
  • assets/example-state-dark.html — minimal dark
  • assets/example-state-full.html — full editorial