#Contributing to gstack

Thanks for wanting to make gstack better. Whether you're fixing a typo in a skill prompt or building an entirely new workflow, this guide will get you up and running fast.

#Quick start

gstack skills are Markdown files that Claude Code discovers from a skills/ directory. Normally they live at ~/.claude/skills/gstack/ (your global install). But when you're developing gstack itself, you want Claude Code to use the skills in your working tree — so edits take effect instantly without copying or deploying anything.

That's what dev mode does. It symlinks your repo into the local .claude/skills/ directory so Claude Code reads skills straight from your checkout.

git clone <repo> && cd gstack
bun install                    # install dependencies
bin/dev-setup                  # activate dev mode

Now edit any SKILL.md, invoke it in Claude Code (e.g. /review), and see your changes live. When you're done developing:

bin/dev-teardown               # deactivate — back to your global install

#How dev mode works

bin/dev-setup creates a .claude/skills/ directory inside the repo (gitignored) and fills it with symlinks pointing back to your working tree. Claude Code sees the local skills/ first, so your edits win over the global install.

gstack/                          <- your working tree
├── .claude/skills/              <- created by dev-setup (gitignored)
│   ├── gstack -> ../../         <- symlink back to repo root
│   ├── review -> gstack/review
│   ├── ship -> gstack/ship
│   └── ...                      <- one symlink per skill
├── review/
│   └── SKILL.md                 <- edit this, test with /review
├── ship/
│   └── SKILL.md
├── browse/
│   ├── src/                     <- TypeScript source
│   └── dist/                    <- compiled binary (gitignored)
└── ...

#Day-to-day workflow

# 1. Enter dev mode
bin/dev-setup

# 2. Edit a skill
vim review/SKILL.md

# 3. Test it in Claude Code — changes are live
#    > /review

# 4. Editing browse source? Rebuild the binary
bun run build

# 5. Done for the day? Tear down
bin/dev-teardown

#Running tests

bun test                     # all tests (browse integration + snapshot)
bun run dev <cmd>            # run CLI in dev mode, e.g. bun run dev goto https://example.com
bun run build                # compile binary to browse/dist/browse

Tests run against the browse binary directly — they don't require dev mode.

#Things to know

• SKILL.md changes are instant. They're just Markdown. Edit, save, invoke.
• Browse source changes need a rebuild. If you touch browse/src/*.ts, run bun run build.
• Dev mode shadows your global install. Project-local skills take priority over ~/.claude/skills/gstack. bin/dev-teardown restores the global one.
• Conductor workspaces are independent. Each workspace is its own clone. Run bin/dev-setup in the one you're working in.
• .claude/skills/ is gitignored. The symlinks never get committed.

#Testing a branch in another repo

When you're developing gstack in one workspace and want to test your branch in a different project (e.g. testing browse changes against your real app), there are two cases depending on how gstack is installed in that project.

#Global install only (no .claude/skills/gstack/ in the project)

Point your global install at the branch:

cd ~/.claude/skills/gstack
git fetch origin
git checkout origin/<branch>        # e.g. origin/v0.3.2
bun install                         # in case deps changed
bun run build                       # rebuild the binary

Now open Claude Code in the other project — it picks up skills from ~/.claude/skills/ automatically. To go back to main when you're done:

cd ~/.claude/skills/gstack
git checkout main && git pull
bun run build

#Vendored project copy (.claude/skills/gstack/ checked into the project)

Some projects vendor gstack by copying it into the repo (no .git inside the copy). Project-local skills take priority over global, so you need to update the vendored copy too. This is a three-step process:

1. Update your global install to the branch (so you have the source):

   cd ~/.claude/skills/gstack
   git fetch origin
   git checkout origin/<branch>      # e.g. origin/v0.3.2
   bun install && bun run build
   

2. Replace the vendored copy in the other project:

   cd /path/to/other-project
   
   # Remove old skill symlinks and vendored copy
   for s in browse plan-ceo-review plan-eng-review review ship retro qa setup-browser-cookies; do
     rm -f .claude/skills/$s
   done
   rm -rf .claude/skills/gstack
   
   # Copy from global install (strips .git so it stays vendored)
   cp -Rf ~/.claude/skills/gstack .claude/skills/gstack
   rm -rf .claude/skills/gstack/.git
   
   # Rebuild binary and re-create skill symlinks
   cd .claude/skills/gstack && ./setup
   

3. Test your changes — open Claude Code in that project and use the skills.

To revert to main later, repeat steps 1-2 with git checkout main && git pull instead of git checkout origin/<branch>.

#Shipping your changes

When you're happy with your skill edits:

/ship

This runs tests, reviews the diff, bumps the version, and opens a PR. See ship/SKILL.md for the full workflow.