/**
 * Extracts a human-readable error message from an unknown error value.
 * Handles Error instances, string errors, and other types safely.
 */
export function getErrorMessage(error: unknown): string {
  if (error instanceof Error) {
    return error.message;
  }
  if (typeof error === "string") {
    return error;
  }
  return String(error);
}

/**
 * Extracts an error message from an unknown error value, with a fallback
 * for when no message can be extracted.
 */
export function getErrorMessageOr(error: unknown, fallback: string): string {
  if (error instanceof Error) {
    return error.message;
  }
  if (typeof error === "string" && error.length > 0) {
    return error;
  }
  return fallback;
}