research

Install

npx skills@latest add abijith-suresh/skills --skill research

Description

Clones canonical source and reads the actual API before implementation against a framework or library. Invoke when implementing against unfamiliar APIs or libraries. The user may also name this skill explicitly.

SKILL.md

Clone the source shallow. Read the actual docs. Implement from truth.

Store

All repos live at ~/.research/<username>/<repo-name>/.

~/.research/
  vercel/
    next.js/
  tailwindlabs/
    tailwindcss/
  facebook/
    react/

This persists across sessions. Repos are never deleted automatically.

Repo Resolution

If the user provides a URL — use it directly.

If no URL is provided — infer from context:

  • Identify the framework, library, or tool being implemented against
  • Find the canonical repo (official org, actively maintained, default branch)
  • If genuinely ambiguous between multiple repos, ask before cloning

Core Workflow

1. Identify target

Determine what framework, library, or tool the implementation depends on.

  • If the user gives a URL, that is the target.
  • Otherwise, inspect project files (package.json, imports, config files) to identify dependencies the implementation will interact with.
  • Be explicit about what you are researching before you clone.

2. Clone shallow

Terminal window
git clone --depth 1 <repo-url> ~/.research/<username>/<repo-name>/

If it already exists, skip to step 3.

Notify the user briefly:

Cloning <username>/<repo-name> for reference…

3. Refresh

On every access, refresh to the latest commit:

Terminal window
git -C ~/.research/<username>/<repo-name> fetch --depth 1 origin HEAD
git -C ~/.research/<username>/<repo-name> reset --hard FETCH_HEAD

This keeps the clone at depth 1 forever — no history bloat.

Notify the user briefly:

Refreshing <username>/<repo-name>…

If refresh fails, note it briefly and continue with the existing state.

4. Orient

Build a mental map of the project:

Terminal window
cat ~/.research/<username>/<repo-name>/README.md
ls -la ~/.research/<username>/<repo-name>/
find ~/.research/<username>/<repo-name> -name "*.md" | head -20

Focus on:

  • What does the project export or expose?
  • Where are the source files (src/, lib/, packages/)?
  • Are there examples or tests that show real usage patterns?

5. Read with intent

Read the specific files, modules, types, tests, or examples directly relevant to the code you are about to write. Not browsing — targeted reading driven by what the implementation needs.

6. Implement

Write code that mirrors the patterns found. This is the implicit output of the skill — the research exists to ground implementation in source truth.

Rules

  • Inform, never ask — say “Cloning…” or “Refreshing…” then act immediately
  • Shallow clone only — always --depth 1. Full clones waste disk space.
  • Refresh on every access — always fetch the latest HEAD before reading. A stale reference is worse than no reference.
  • Never clone into the project directory — always use ~/.research/
  • Never delete repos — the store is persistent; cleanup is always a manual user action
  • Implement from truth — the output of this skill is working code grounded in the source, not a summary or report