# Can I Help

> Use when user asks to "contribute", "where can I help", "good first issue", "what needs work", "how to contribute", "where to start contributing", "find tasks", "help with project". Analyzes project needs and matches to developer skills.

- Skill: `agent-sh/can-i-help` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add agent-sh/can-i-help`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/agent-sh/can-i-help/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: agent-sh (https://skillmd.com/u/agent-sh)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/agent-sh/can-i-help

---


# Can I Help Skill

Find where a developer can contribute to a project. Collects project data automatically, queries repo-intel for contributor-specific signals, fetches open issues, then matches developer skills to project needs interactively.

## Architecture

```
/can-i-help
  │
  ├─ Phase 1: collector.js (pure JS, zero LLM)
  │   ├─ scanManifest()    → package.json/Cargo.toml/go.mod
  │   ├─ scanStructure()   → directory tree
  │   ├─ getRepoIntel()    → onboard query for project context
  │   └─ getGitInfo()      → branch, remote URL
  │
  ├─ Phase 1b: Contributor signals (pure JS)
  │   ├─ can-i-help query  → good-first areas, needs-help areas
  │   ├─ test-gaps query   → files needing tests
  │   ├─ doc-drift query   → stale documentation
  │   ├─ bugspots query    → bug-prone files
  │   └─ gh issue list     → open GitHub issues
  │
  ├─ Phase 2: can-i-help-agent (Sonnet)
  │   ├─ Ask about developer background
  │   ├─ Match skills to project needs
  │   └─ Recommend specific contribution areas
  │
  └─ Phase 3: Interactive guidance
      ├─ Walk through chosen contribution
      └─ Read code, explain what needs doing
```


## Repo-Intel Data

**Expected:** the orchestrator (the command that spawned this agent) has already checked `<stateDir>/repo-intel.json` and either pre-fetched the data into your context or skipped (user declined to generate). **Do not call `AskUserQuestion` here** - subagents cannot interact with the user.

**If the pre-fetched data is empty**, proceed with the available context. The orchestrator has already made the decision on the user's behalf.

**Binary:** `agent-analyzer` auto-downloads to `~/.agent-sh/bin/` from `agent-sh/agent-analyzer` GitHub releases (~10 MB) on first use. The `lib/agentsys` resolver locates the agentsys install (CC marketplace clone, npm global, or sibling repo).