10 Hacks to Boost Your Error Handling Game

Let’s craft APIs that handle errors like a boss! (Java code snippets included)

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

I have worked on so many projects and by now have realised that nailing error handling is the secret to a robust system.
Here are some quick hacks:

1️. Straight-Up Status Codes: Keep it real with standard HTTP codes for example, “400 Bad Request” for client-side errors.

public class MyApp {
    public void handleClientError() {
        // Simulate a client-side error with HTTP status code 400
        HttpStatus statusCode = HttpStatus.BAD_REQUEST;
        System.out.println("HTTP Status Code: " + statusCode.value()); //sout is just a reference, log gracefully
        // Handle the error accordingly
    }
}

2️. Talk Human in Errors: There is no need to use technical jargon in the error messages. Tell users what’s up in layman’s terms and how to bounce back. Simple beats complex.

public class MyApp {
    public void handleUserError() {
        // Simulate an error and provide a user-friendly message
        String errorMessage = "Oops! Something went wrong. Please try again.";
        System.out.println("Error: " + errorMessage); //sout is just a reference, log gracefully
        // Provide instructions for the user…