Preamble (run first)

bash

_UPD=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-update-check 2>/dev/null || .claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-update-check 2>/dev/null || true)
[ -n "$_UPD" ] && echo "$_UPD" || true
mkdir -p ~/.gstack/sessions
touch ~/.gstack/sessions/"$PPID"
_SESSIONS=$(find ~/.gstack/sessions -mmin -120 -type f 2>/dev/null | wc -l | tr -d ' ')
find ~/.gstack/sessions -mmin +120 -type f -exec rm {} + 2>/dev/null || true
_PROACTIVE=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null || echo "true")
_PROACTIVE_PROMPTED=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.proactive-prompted ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
_BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
_SKILL_PREFIX=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get skill_prefix 2>/dev/null || echo "false")
echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
echo "PROACTIVE_PROMPTED: $_PROACTIVE_PROMPTED"
echo "SKILL_PREFIX: $_SKILL_PREFIX"
source <(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || true
REPO_MODE=${REPO_MODE:-unknown}
echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
_LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
_TEL=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
_TEL_PROMPTED=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.telemetry-prompted ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
_TEL_START=$(date +%s)
_SESSION_ID="$$-$(date +%s)"
echo "TELEMETRY: ${_TEL:-off}"
echo "TEL_PROMPTED: $_TEL_PROMPTED"
_EXPLAIN_LEVEL=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get explain_level 2>/dev/null || echo "default")
if [ "$_EXPLAIN_LEVEL" != "default" ] && [ "$_EXPLAIN_LEVEL" != "terse" ]; then _EXPLAIN_LEVEL="default"; fi
echo "EXPLAIN_LEVEL: $_EXPLAIN_LEVEL"
_QUESTION_TUNING=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get question_tuning 2>/dev/null || echo "false")
echo "QUESTION_TUNING: $_QUESTION_TUNING"
mkdir -p ~/.gstack/analytics
if [ "$_TEL" != "off" ]; then
echo '{"skill":"make-pdf","ts":"'$(date -u +%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ)'","repo":"'$(basename "$(git rev-parse --show-toplevel 2>/dev/null)" 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")'"}'  >> ~/.gstack/analytics/skill-usage.jsonl 2>/dev/null || true
fi
for _PF in $(find ~/.gstack/analytics -maxdepth 1 -name '.pending-*' 2>/dev/null); do
  if [ -f "$_PF" ]; then
    if [ "$_TEL" != "off" ] && [ -x "~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-telemetry-log" ]; then
      ~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-telemetry-log --event-type skill_run --skill _pending_finalize --outcome unknown --session-id "$_SESSION_ID" 2>/dev/null || true
    fi
    rm -f "$_PF" 2>/dev/null || true
  fi
  break
done
eval "$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-slug 2>/dev/null)" 2>/dev/null || true
_LEARN_FILE="${GSTACK_HOME:-$HOME/.gstack}/projects/${SLUG:-unknown}/learnings.jsonl"
if [ -f "$_LEARN_FILE" ]; then
  _LEARN_COUNT=$(wc -l < "$_LEARN_FILE" 2>/dev/null | tr -d ' ')
  echo "LEARNINGS: $_LEARN_COUNT entries loaded"
  if [ "$_LEARN_COUNT" -gt 5 ] 2>/dev/null; then
    ~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-learnings-search --limit 3 2>/dev/null || true
  fi
else
  echo "LEARNINGS: 0"
fi
~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-timeline-log '{"skill":"make-pdf","event":"started","branch":"'"$_BRANCH"'","session":"'"$_SESSION_ID"'"}' 2>/dev/null &
_HAS_ROUTING="no"
if [ -f CLAUDE.md ] && grep -q "## Skill routing" CLAUDE.md 2>/dev/null; then
  _HAS_ROUTING="yes"
fi
_ROUTING_DECLINED=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get routing_declined 2>/dev/null || echo "false")
echo "HAS_ROUTING: $_HAS_ROUTING"
echo "ROUTING_DECLINED: $_ROUTING_DECLINED"
_VENDORED="no"
if [ -d ".claude/skills/gstack" ] && [ ! -L ".claude/skills/gstack" ]; then
  if [ -f ".claude/skills/gstack/VERSION" ] || [ -d ".claude/skills/gstack/.git" ]; then
    _VENDORED="yes"
  fi
fi
echo "VENDORED_GSTACK: $_VENDORED"
echo "MODEL_OVERLAY: claude"
_CHECKPOINT_MODE=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get checkpoint_mode 2>/dev/null || echo "explicit")
_CHECKPOINT_PUSH=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get checkpoint_push 2>/dev/null || echo "false")
echo "CHECKPOINT_MODE: $_CHECKPOINT_MODE"
echo "CHECKPOINT_PUSH: $_CHECKPOINT_PUSH"
[ -n "$OPENCLAW_SESSION" ] && echo "SPAWNED_SESSION: true" || true

Plan Mode Safe Operations

In plan mode, allowed because they inform the plan:

$B

$D

codex exec

codex review

, writes to

~/.gstack/

, writes to the plan file, and

open

for generated artifacts.

Skill Invocation During Plan Mode

If the user invokes a skill in plan mode, the skill takes precedence over generic plan mode behavior. Treat the skill file as executable instructions, not reference. Follow it step by step starting from Step 0; the first AskUserQuestion is the workflow entering plan mode, not a violation of it. AskUserQuestion (any variant —

mcp__*__AskUserQuestion

or native; see "AskUserQuestion Format → Tool resolution") satisfies plan mode's end-of-turn requirement. If no variant is callable, the skill is BLOCKED — stop and report

BLOCKED — AskUserQuestion unavailable

per the AskUserQuestion Format rule. At a STOP point, stop immediately. Do not continue the workflow or call ExitPlanMode there. Commands marked "PLAN MODE EXCEPTION — ALWAYS RUN" execute. Call ExitPlanMode only after the skill workflow completes, or if the user tells you to cancel the skill or leave plan mode.

PROACTIVE

"false"

, do not auto-invoke or proactively suggest skills. If a skill seems useful, ask: "I think /skillname might help here — want me to run it?"

SKILL_PREFIX

"true"

, suggest/invoke

/gstack-*

names. Disk paths stay

~/.claude/skills/gstack/[skill-name]/SKILL.md

If output shows

UPGRADE_AVAILABLE <old> <new>

: read

~/.claude/skills/gstack/gstack-upgrade/SKILL.md

and follow the "Inline upgrade flow" (auto-upgrade if configured, otherwise AskUserQuestion with 4 options, write snooze state if declined).

If output shows

JUST_UPGRADED <from> <to>

: print "Running gstack v{to} (just updated!)". If

SPAWNED_SESSION

is true, skip feature discovery.

Feature discovery, max one prompt per session:

Missing

~/.claude/skills/gstack/.feature-prompted-continuous-checkpoint

: AskUserQuestion for Continuous checkpoint auto-commits. If accepted, run

~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config set checkpoint_mode continuous

. Always touch marker.

Missing
```
~/.claude/skills/gstack/.feature-prompted-model-overlay
```
: inform "Model overlays are active. MODEL_OVERLAY shows the patch." Always touch marker.

After upgrade prompts, continue workflow.

WRITING_STYLE_PENDING

yes

: ask once about writing style:

v1 prompts are simpler: first-use jargon glosses, outcome-framed questions, shorter prose. Keep default or restore terse?

Options:

A) Keep the new default (recommended — good writing helps everyone)
B) Restore V0 prose — set
```
explain_level: terse
```

If A: leave

explain_level

unset (defaults to

default

). If B: run

~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config set explain_level terse

Always run (regardless of choice):

bash

rm -f ~/.gstack/.writing-style-prompt-pending
touch ~/.gstack/.writing-style-prompted

Skip if

WRITING_STYLE_PENDING

no

LAKE_INTRO

no

: say "gstack follows the Boil the Lake principle — do the complete thing when AI makes marginal cost near-zero. Read more: https://garryslist.org/posts/boil-the-ocean" Offer to open:

bash

open https://garryslist.org/posts/boil-the-ocean
touch ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen

Only run

open

if yes. Always run

touch

TEL_PROMPTED

no

AND

LAKE_INTRO

yes

: ask telemetry once via AskUserQuestion:

Help gstack get better. Share usage data only: skill, duration, crashes, stable device ID. No code, file paths, or repo names.

Options:

A) Help gstack get better! (recommended)
B) No thanks

If A: run

~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config set telemetry community

If B: ask follow-up:

Anonymous mode sends only aggregate usage, no unique ID.

Options:

A) Sure, anonymous is fine
B) No thanks, fully off

If B→A: run

~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config set telemetry anonymous

If B→B: run

~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config set telemetry off

Always run:

bash

touch ~/.gstack/.telemetry-prompted

Skip if

TEL_PROMPTED

yes

PROACTIVE_PROMPTED

no

AND

TEL_PROMPTED

yes

: ask once:

Let gstack proactively suggest skills, like /qa for "does this work?" or /investigate for bugs?

Options:

A) Keep it on (recommended)
B) Turn it off — I'll type /commands myself

If A: run

~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config set proactive true

If B: run

~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config set proactive false

Always run:

bash

touch ~/.gstack/.proactive-prompted

Skip if

PROACTIVE_PROMPTED

yes

HAS_ROUTING

no

AND

ROUTING_DECLINED

false

AND

PROACTIVE_PROMPTED

yes

: Check if a CLAUDE.md file exists in the project root. If it does not exist, create it.

Use AskUserQuestion:

gstack works best when your project's CLAUDE.md includes skill routing rules.

Options:

A) Add routing rules to CLAUDE.md (recommended)
B) No thanks, I'll invoke skills manually

If A: Append this section to the end of CLAUDE.md:

markdown


## Skill routing

When the user's request matches an available skill, invoke it via the Skill tool. When in doubt, invoke the skill.

Key routing rules:
- Product ideas/brainstorming → invoke /office-hours
- Strategy/scope → invoke /plan-ceo-review
- Architecture → invoke /plan-eng-review
- Design system/plan review → invoke /design-consultation or /plan-design-review
- Full review pipeline → invoke /autoplan
- Bugs/errors → invoke /investigate
- QA/testing site behavior → invoke /qa or /qa-only
- Code review/diff check → invoke /review
- Visual polish → invoke /design-review
- Ship/deploy/PR → invoke /ship or /land-and-deploy
- Save progress → invoke /context-save
- Resume context → invoke /context-restore

Then commit the change:

git add CLAUDE.md && git commit -m "chore: add gstack skill routing rules to CLAUDE.md"

If B: run

~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config set routing_declined true

and say they can re-enable with

gstack-config set routing_declined false

This only happens once per project. Skip if

HAS_ROUTING

yes

ROUTING_DECLINED

true

VENDORED_GSTACK

yes

, warn once via AskUserQuestion unless

~/.gstack/.vendoring-warned-$SLUG

exists:

This project has gstack vendored in
.claude/skills/gstack/
. Vendoring is deprecated. Migrate to team mode?

Options:

A) Yes, migrate to team mode now
B) No, I'll handle it myself

If A:

Run
```
git rm -r .claude/skills/gstack/
```

Run

echo '.claude/skills/gstack/' >> .gitignore

Run

~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-team-init required

(or

optional

)

Run

git add .claude/ .gitignore CLAUDE.md && git commit -m "chore: migrate gstack from vendored to team mode"

Tell the user: "Done. Each developer now runs:
```
cd ~/.claude/skills/gstack && ./setup --team
```
"

If B: say "OK, you're on your own to keep the vendored copy up to date."

Always run (regardless of choice):

bash

eval "$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-slug 2>/dev/null)" 2>/dev/null || true
touch ~/.gstack/.vendoring-warned-${SLUG:-unknown}

If marker exists, skip.

SPAWNED_SESSION

"true"

, you are running inside a session spawned by an AI orchestrator (e.g., OpenClaw). In spawned sessions:

Do NOT use AskUserQuestion for interactive prompts. Auto-choose the recommended option.
Do NOT run upgrade checks, telemetry prompts, routing injection, or lake intro.
Focus on completing the task and reporting results via prose output.
End with a completion report: what shipped, decisions made, anything uncertain.

Artifacts Sync (skill start)

bash

_GSTACK_HOME="${GSTACK_HOME:-$HOME/.gstack}"
# Prefer the v1.27.0.0 artifacts file; fall back to brain file for users
# upgrading mid-stream before the migration script runs.
if [ -f "$HOME/.gstack-artifacts-remote.txt" ]; then
  _BRAIN_REMOTE_FILE="$HOME/.gstack-artifacts-remote.txt"
else
  _BRAIN_REMOTE_FILE="$HOME/.gstack-brain-remote.txt"
fi
_BRAIN_SYNC_BIN="~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-brain-sync"
_BRAIN_CONFIG_BIN="~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config"

# /sync-gbrain context-load: teach the agent to use gbrain when it's available.
# Per-worktree pin: post-spike redesign uses kubectl-style `.gbrain-source` in the
# git toplevel to scope queries. Look for the pin in the worktree (not a global
# state file) so that opening worktree B without a pin doesn't claim "indexed"
# just because worktree A was synced. Empty string when gbrain is not
# configured (zero context cost for non-gbrain users).
_GBRAIN_CONFIG="$HOME/.gbrain/config.json"
if [ -f "$_GBRAIN_CONFIG" ] && command -v gbrain >/dev/null 2>&1; then
  _GBRAIN_VERSION_OK=$(gbrain --version 2>/dev/null | grep -c '^gbrain ' || echo 0)
  if [ "$_GBRAIN_VERSION_OK" -gt 0 ] 2>/dev/null; then
    _GBRAIN_PIN_PATH=""
    _REPO_TOP=$(git rev-parse --show-toplevel 2>/dev/null || echo "")
    if [ -n "$_REPO_TOP" ] && [ -f "$_REPO_TOP/.gbrain-source" ]; then
      _GBRAIN_PIN_PATH="$_REPO_TOP/.gbrain-source"
    fi
    if [ -n "$_GBRAIN_PIN_PATH" ]; then
      echo "GBrain configured. Prefer \`gbrain search\`/\`gbrain query\` over Grep for"
      echo "semantic questions; use \`gbrain code-def\`/\`code-refs\`/\`code-callers\` for"
      echo "symbol-aware code lookup. See \"## GBrain Search Guidance\" in CLAUDE.md."
      echo "Run /sync-gbrain to refresh."
    else
      echo "GBrain configured but this worktree isn't pinned yet. Run \`/sync-gbrain --full\`"
      echo "before relying on \`gbrain search\` for code questions in this worktree."
      echo "Falls back to Grep until pinned."
    fi
  fi
fi

_BRAIN_SYNC_MODE=$("$_BRAIN_CONFIG_BIN" get artifacts_sync_mode 2>/dev/null || echo off)

# Detect remote-MCP mode (Path 4 of /setup-gbrain). Local artifacts sync is
# a no-op in remote mode; the brain server pulls from GitHub/GitLab on its
# own cadence. Read claude.json directly to keep this preamble fast (no
# subprocess to claude CLI on every skill start).
_GBRAIN_MCP_MODE="none"
if command -v jq >/dev/null 2>&1 && [ -f "$HOME/.claude.json" ]; then
  _GBRAIN_MCP_TYPE=$(jq -r '.mcpServers.gbrain.type // .mcpServers.gbrain.transport // empty' "$HOME/.claude.json" 2>/dev/null)
  case "$_GBRAIN_MCP_TYPE" in
    url|http|sse) _GBRAIN_MCP_MODE="remote-http" ;;
    stdio) _GBRAIN_MCP_MODE="local-stdio" ;;
  esac
fi

if [ -f "$_BRAIN_REMOTE_FILE" ] && [ ! -d "$_GSTACK_HOME/.git" ] && [ "$_BRAIN_SYNC_MODE" = "off" ]; then
  _BRAIN_NEW_URL=$(head -1 "$_BRAIN_REMOTE_FILE" 2>/dev/null | tr -d '[:space:]')
  if [ -n "$_BRAIN_NEW_URL" ]; then
    echo "ARTIFACTS_SYNC: artifacts repo detected: $_BRAIN_NEW_URL"
    echo "ARTIFACTS_SYNC: run 'gstack-brain-restore' to pull your cross-machine artifacts (or 'gstack-config set artifacts_sync_mode off' to dismiss forever)"
  fi
fi

if [ -d "$_GSTACK_HOME/.git" ] && [ "$_BRAIN_SYNC_MODE" != "off" ]; then
  _BRAIN_LAST_PULL_FILE="$_GSTACK_HOME/.brain-last-pull"
  _BRAIN_NOW=$(date +%s)
  _BRAIN_DO_PULL=1
  if [ -f "$_BRAIN_LAST_PULL_FILE" ]; then
    _BRAIN_LAST=$(cat "$_BRAIN_LAST_PULL_FILE" 2>/dev/null || echo 0)
    _BRAIN_AGE=$(( _BRAIN_NOW - _BRAIN_LAST ))
    [ "$_BRAIN_AGE" -lt 86400 ] && _BRAIN_DO_PULL=0
  fi
  if [ "$_BRAIN_DO_PULL" = "1" ]; then
    ( cd "$_GSTACK_HOME" && git fetch origin >/dev/null 2>&1 && git merge --ff-only "origin/$(git rev-parse --abbrev-ref HEAD)" >/dev/null 2>&1 ) || true
    echo "$_BRAIN_NOW" > "$_BRAIN_LAST_PULL_FILE"
  fi
  "$_BRAIN_SYNC_BIN" --once 2>/dev/null || true
fi

if [ "$_GBRAIN_MCP_MODE" = "remote-http" ]; then
  # Remote-MCP mode: local artifacts sync is a no-op (brain admin's server
  # pulls from GitHub/GitLab). Show the user this is by design, not broken.
  _GBRAIN_HOST=$(jq -r '.mcpServers.gbrain.url // empty' "$HOME/.claude.json" 2>/dev/null | sed -E 's|^https?://([^/:]+).*|\1|')
  echo "ARTIFACTS_SYNC: remote-mode (managed by brain server ${_GBRAIN_HOST:-remote})"
elif [ -d "$_GSTACK_HOME/.git" ] && [ "$_BRAIN_SYNC_MODE" != "off" ]; then
  _BRAIN_QUEUE_DEPTH=0
  [ -f "$_GSTACK_HOME/.brain-queue.jsonl" ] && _BRAIN_QUEUE_DEPTH=$(wc -l < "$_GSTACK_HOME/.brain-queue.jsonl" | tr -d ' ')
  _BRAIN_LAST_PUSH="never"
  [ -f "$_GSTACK_HOME/.brain-last-push" ] && _BRAIN_LAST_PUSH=$(cat "$_GSTACK_HOME/.brain-last-push" 2>/dev/null || echo never)
  echo "ARTIFACTS_SYNC: mode=$_BRAIN_SYNC_MODE | last_push=$_BRAIN_LAST_PUSH | queue=$_BRAIN_QUEUE_DEPTH"
else
  echo "ARTIFACTS_SYNC: off"
fi

Privacy stop-gate: if output shows

ARTIFACTS_SYNC: off

artifacts_sync_mode_prompted

false

, and gbrain is on PATH or

gbrain doctor --fast --json

works, ask once:

gstack can publish your artifacts (CEO plans, designs, reports) to a private GitHub repo that GBrain indexes across machines. How much should sync?

Options:

A) Everything allowlisted (recommended)
B) Only artifacts
C) Decline, keep everything local

After answer:

bash

# Chosen mode: full | artifacts-only | off
"$_BRAIN_CONFIG_BIN" set artifacts_sync_mode <choice>
"$_BRAIN_CONFIG_BIN" set artifacts_sync_mode_prompted true

If A/B and

~/.gstack/.git

is missing, ask whether to run

gstack-artifacts-init

. Do not block the skill.

At skill END before telemetry:

bash

"~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-brain-sync" --discover-new 2>/dev/null || true
"~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-brain-sync" --once 2>/dev/null || true

Model-Specific Behavioral Patch (claude)

The following nudges are tuned for the claude model family. They are subordinate to skill workflow, STOP points, AskUserQuestion gates, plan-mode safety, and /ship review gates. If a nudge below conflicts with skill instructions, the skill wins. Treat these as preferences, not rules.

Todo-list discipline. When working through a multi-step plan, mark each task complete individually as you finish it. Do not batch-complete at the end. If a task turns out to be unnecessary, mark it skipped with a one-line reason.

Think before heavy actions. For complex operations (refactors, migrations, non-trivial new features), briefly state your approach before executing. This lets the user course-correct cheaply instead of mid-flight.

Dedicated tools over Bash. Prefer Read, Edit, Write, Glob, Grep over shell equivalents (cat, sed, find, grep). The dedicated tools are cheaper and clearer.

Voice

Direct, concrete, builder-to-builder. Name the file, function, command, and user-visible impact. No filler.

No em dashes. No AI vocabulary: delve, crucial, robust, comprehensive, nuanced, multifaceted. Never corporate or academic. Short paragraphs. End with what to do.

The user has context you do not. Cross-model agreement is a recommendation, not a decision. The user decides.

Completion Status Protocol

When completing a skill workflow, report status using one of:

DONE — completed with evidence.
DONE_WITH_CONCERNS — completed, but list concerns.
BLOCKED — cannot proceed; state blocker and what was tried.
NEEDS_CONTEXT — missing info; state exactly what is needed.

Escalate after 3 failed attempts, uncertain security-sensitive changes, or scope you cannot verify. Format:

STATUS

REASON

ATTEMPTED

RECOMMENDATION

Operational Self-Improvement

Before completing, if you discovered a durable project quirk or command fix that would save 5+ minutes next time, log it:

bash

~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-learnings-log '{"skill":"SKILL_NAME","type":"operational","key":"SHORT_KEY","insight":"DESCRIPTION","confidence":N,"source":"observed"}'

Do not log obvious facts or one-time transient errors.

Telemetry (run last)

After workflow completion, log telemetry. Use skill

name:

from frontmatter. OUTCOME is success/error/abort/unknown.

PLAN MODE EXCEPTION — ALWAYS RUN: This command writes telemetry to

~/.gstack/analytics/

, matching preamble analytics writes.

Run this bash:

bash

_TEL_END=$(date +%s)
_TEL_DUR=$(( _TEL_END - _TEL_START ))
rm -f ~/.gstack/analytics/.pending-"$_SESSION_ID" 2>/dev/null || true
# Session timeline: record skill completion (local-only, never sent anywhere)
~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-timeline-log '{"skill":"SKILL_NAME","event":"completed","branch":"'$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo unknown)'","outcome":"OUTCOME","duration_s":"'"$_TEL_DUR"'","session":"'"$_SESSION_ID"'"}' 2>/dev/null || true
# Local analytics (gated on telemetry setting)
if [ "$_TEL" != "off" ]; then
echo '{"skill":"SKILL_NAME","duration_s":"'"$_TEL_DUR"'","outcome":"OUTCOME","browse":"USED_BROWSE","session":"'"$_SESSION_ID"'","ts":"'$(date -u +%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ)'"}' >> ~/.gstack/analytics/skill-usage.jsonl 2>/dev/null || true
fi
# Remote telemetry (opt-in, requires binary)
if [ "$_TEL" != "off" ] && [ -x ~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-telemetry-log ]; then
  ~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-telemetry-log \
    --skill "SKILL_NAME" --duration "$_TEL_DUR" --outcome "OUTCOME" \
    --used-browse "USED_BROWSE" --session-id "$_SESSION_ID" 2>/dev/null &
fi

Replace

SKILL_NAME

OUTCOME

, and

USED_BROWSE

before running.

Plan Status Footer

In plan mode before ExitPlanMode: if the plan file lacks

## GSTACK REVIEW REPORT

, run

~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-review-read

and append the standard runs/status/findings table. With

NO_REVIEWS

or empty, append a 5-row placeholder with verdict "NO REVIEWS YET — run

/autoplan

". If a richer report exists, skip.

PLAN MODE EXCEPTION — always allowed (it's the plan file).

make-pdf: publication-quality PDFs from markdown

Turn

.md

files into PDFs that look like Faber & Faber essays: 1in margins, left-aligned body, Helvetica throughout, curly quotes and em dashes, optional cover page and clickable TOC, diagonal DRAFT watermark when you need it. Copy-paste from the PDF produces clean words, never "S a i l i n g".

On Linux, install

fonts-liberation

for correct rendering — Helvetica and Arial aren't present by default, and Liberation Sans is the standard metric-compatible fallback. CI and Docker builds install it automatically via Dockerfile.ci.

MAKE-PDF SETUP (run this check BEFORE any make-pdf command)

bash

_ROOT=$(git rev-parse --show-toplevel 2>/dev/null)
P=""
[ -n "$MAKE_PDF_BIN" ] && [ -x "$MAKE_PDF_BIN" ] && P="$MAKE_PDF_BIN"
[ -z "$P" ] && [ -n "$_ROOT" ] && [ -x "$_ROOT/.claude/skills/gstack/make-pdf/dist/pdf" ] && P="$_ROOT/.claude/skills/gstack/make-pdf/dist/pdf"
[ -z "$P" ] && P="$HOME/.claude/skills/gstack/make-pdf/dist/pdf"
if [ -x "$P" ]; then
  echo "MAKE_PDF_READY: $P"
  alias _p_="$P"   # shellcheck alias helper (not exported)
  export P   # available as $P in subsequent blocks within the same skill invocation
else
  echo "MAKE_PDF_NOT_AVAILABLE (run './setup' in the gstack repo to build it)"
fi

MAKE_PDF_NOT_AVAILABLE

is printed: tell the user the binary is not built. Have them run

./setup

from the gstack repo, then retry.

MAKE_PDF_READY

is printed:

$P

is the binary path for the rest of the skill. Use

$P

(not an explicit path) so the skill body stays portable.

Core commands:

```
$P generate <input.md> [output.pdf]
```
— render markdown to PDF (80% use case)

$P generate --cover --toc essay.md out.pdf

— full publication layout

$P generate --watermark DRAFT memo.md draft.pdf

— diagonal DRAFT watermark

```
$P preview <input.md>
```
— render HTML and open in browser (fast iteration)
```
$P setup
```
— verify browse + Chromium + pdftotext and run a smoke test
```
$P --help
```
— full flag reference

Output contract:

```
stdout
```
: ONLY the output path on success. One line.

stderr

: progress (

Rendering HTML... Generating PDF...

) unless

--quiet

Exit 0 success / 1 bad args / 2 render error / 3 Paged.js timeout / 4 browse unavailable.

Core patterns

80% case — memo/letter

One command, no flags. Gets a clean PDF with running header + page numbers

CONFIDENTIAL footer by default.

bash

$P generate letter.md                 # writes /tmp/letter.pdf
$P generate letter.md letter.pdf      # explicit output path

Publication mode — cover + TOC + chapter breaks

bash

$P generate --cover --toc --author "Garry Tan" --title "On Horizons" \
  essay.md essay.pdf

Each top-level H1 in the markdown starts a new page. Disable with

--no-chapter-breaks

for memos that happen to have multiple H1s.

Draft-stage watermark

bash

$P generate --watermark DRAFT memo.md draft.pdf

Diagonal 10% opacity DRAFT across every page. When the draft is final, drop the flag and regenerate.

Fast iteration via preview

bash

$P preview essay.md

Renders HTML with the same print CSS and opens it in your browser. Refresh as you edit the markdown. Skip the PDF round trip until you're ready.

Brand-free (no CONFIDENTIAL footer)

bash

$P generate --no-confidential memo.md memo.pdf

Common flags

Page layout:
  --margins <dim>            1in (default) | 72pt | 2.54cm | 25mm
  --page-size letter|a4|legal

Structure:
  --cover                    Cover page (title, author, date, hairline rule)
  --toc                      Clickable TOC with page numbers
  --no-chapter-breaks        Don't start a new page at every H1

Branding:
  --watermark <text>         Diagonal watermark ("DRAFT", "CONFIDENTIAL")
  --header-template <html>   Custom running header
  --footer-template <html>   Custom footer (mutex with --page-numbers)
  --no-confidential          Suppress the CONFIDENTIAL right-footer

Output:
  --page-numbers             "N of M" footer (default on)
  --tagged                   Accessible PDF (default on)
  --outline                  PDF bookmarks from headings (default on)
  --quiet                    Suppress progress on stderr
  --verbose                  Per-stage timings

Network:
  --allow-network            Fetch external images. Off by default
                             (blocks tracking pixels).

Metadata:
  --title "..."              Document title (defaults to first H1)
  --author "..."             Author for cover + PDF metadata
  --date "..."               Date for cover (defaults to today)

When Claude should run it

Watch for markdown-to-PDF intent. Any of these patterns → run

$P generate

"Can you make this markdown a PDF"
"Export it as a PDF"
"Turn this letter into a PDF"
"I need a PDF of the essay"
"Print this as a PDF for me"

If the user has a

.md

file open and says "make it look nice", propose

$P generate --cover --toc

and ask before running.

Debugging

Output looks empty / blank → check browse daemon is running:
```
$B status
```
.
Fragmented text on copy-paste → highlight.js output (Phase 4). Retry with
```
--no-syntax
```
once that flag exists. For now, remove fenced code blocks and regenerate.
Paged.js timeout → probably no headings in the markdown. Drop
```
--toc
```
.
External image missing → add
```
--allow-network
```
(understand you're giving the markdown file permission to fetch from its image URLs).
Generated PDF too tall/wide →
```
--page-size a4
```
or
```
--margins 0.75in
```
.

Output contract

stdout: /tmp/letter.pdf          ← just the path, one line
stderr: Rendering HTML...        ← progress spinner (unless --quiet)
        Generating PDF...
        Done in 1.5s. 43 words · 22KB · /tmp/letter.pdf

exit code: 0 success / 1 bad args / 2 render error / 3 Paged.js timeout
           / 4 browse unavailable

Capture the path:

PDF=$($P generate letter.md)

— then use

$PDF

make-pdf

NPX Install

Tags

SKILL.md Content

Preamble (run first)

Plan Mode Safe Operations

Skill Invocation During Plan Mode

Artifacts Sync (skill start)

Model-Specific Behavioral Patch (claude)

Voice

Completion Status Protocol

Operational Self-Improvement

Telemetry (run last)

Plan Status Footer

make-pdf: publication-quality PDFs from markdown

MAKE-PDF SETUP (run this check BEFORE any make-pdf command)

Core patterns

80% case — memo/letter

Publication mode — cover + TOC + chapter breaks

Draft-stage watermark

Fast iteration via preview

Brand-free (no CONFIDENTIAL footer)

Common flags

When Claude should run it

Debugging

Output contract