Project context primer

Skill omergocmen/vibe-coder-kit/.agent/skills/project-context-primer

Install

npx -y skills add omergocmen/vibe-coder-kit --skill project-context-primer

Assembled from the repository path, not quoted from the project. Check it against their README if it does not work.

What its author says it does

Copied from the file, not written here

Run this skill at the very start of any new conversation or agent session before writing a single line of code. It loads the project's architectural decisions, conventions, known gotchas, and current task status so the agent operates with full context — not as a blank slate.

SKILL.md

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Project Context Primer Skill

When to Trigger

Always run first when:

Starting a new conversation about this project
A subagent is spawned to work on a module
Picking up work after a gap of more than a day
Someone says "can you help with this project?" without any context

Step-by-Step Process

1. Load the Knowledge Index

Read .agent/knowledge/INDEX.md first.

The INDEX.md file contains rows in this format:

| Date | Type | Topic (linked) | One-line summary |

Scan all rows for entries relevant to today's task
For each relevant row, follow the link and read the full .agent/knowledge/<slug>.md file
Pay special attention to entries of type decision and gotcha — these prevent the most costly mistakes
Extract the slug from the link: [topic](./auth/token-refresh.md) → slug is auth/token-refresh

If INDEX.md does not exist, output this exact warning and proceed:

⚠️ Knowledge base not initialized (.agent/knowledge/INDEX.md missing).
This means no architectural decisions, conventions, or gotchas have been recorded yet.
Action: Use the `knowledge-base-update` skill at the end of this session to start building it.

2. Load the Project README

Read README.md (or docs/README.md if present).

Extract and internalize:

What the project does (one sentence)
Tech stack (language, framework, major libraries)
How to run it locally
How to run tests

3. Load Active Task Context

Check for these files in order and read whichever exist:

.agent/CURRENT_TASK.md       ← What is being worked on right now
.agent/OPEN_QUESTIONS.md     ← Decisions not yet made

Note: Architectural decisions and past decisions are stored in .agent/knowledge/ (via knowledge-base-update skill), not in a separate DECISIONS_LOG. The INDEX.md (Step 1) is your decisions history.

If .agent/CURRENT_TASK.md exists, treat it as ground truth for your current mission. If it does not exist, ask the user what today's task is before proceeding.

4. Scan Project Structure

Run a shallow directory listing (top 2 levels) to understand layout:

src/
  components/
  services/
  utils/
docs/
tests/
.agent/

Note any non-standard folders and check .agent/knowledge/ for explanations.

5. Check for Active Conventions

Read .agent/rules/ if it exists. These are hard constraints — not suggestions.

Common rule files to look for:

code-style.md
commit-messages.md
test-coverage.md
no-secrets.md

6. Produce a Context Summary

Before doing any task work, output a brief summary in this format:

## Context Loaded

**Project:** <name> — <one-line description>
**Stack:** <languages, frameworks>
**Current Task:** <what we're doing today, from CURRENT_TASK.md or user>
**Relevant Knowledge Entries Loaded:** <list of slugs>
**Active Rules:** <list or "none found">
**Open Questions:** <any blockers or undecided things>
**Ready to proceed:** Yes / No (explain if No)

Only after producing this summary should you begin the actual task.

Rules

Never skip this skill on a new session. A 2-minute scan saves hours of rework.
Don't assume. If the README contradicts a knowledge entry, flag it — don't silently pick one.
Update CURRENT_TASK.md at the end of each session with what was done and what's next.
If context is missing, ask the user the minimum questions needed to fill the gaps before starting.

Maintaining CURRENT_TASK.md

At the end of every session, update .agent/CURRENT_TASK.md:

# Current Task

## What We're Building
<description>

## Status
<In Progress | Blocked | Review Needed | Done>

## Last Session Summary
<date> — <what was done>

## Next Steps
1. <next action>
2. <next action>

## Blockers
- <anything preventing progress>