Garmin Dev

garmin-dev

Cross-platform workflow for compiling, running, and packaging Connect IQ apps — plus a cached mirror of Garmin's official docs to ground every API / how-to answer in what the platform actually allows.

OS support: Windows (PowerShell 5.1+) · macOS (Bash, Apple Silicon + Intel) · Linux (Bash, Ubuntu LTS officially supported by Garmin)

How dispatch picks the right script

The skill ships parallel script sets — one per OS family. Detect OS first, then invoke the matching command:

Every script auto-detects SDK + JDK at runtime — no per-machine path config needed. Every script reads manifest.xml from cwd for project name + device id, so always invoke from the project root (not from the skill folder).

Layout

scripts/
  windows/                   PowerShell — Windows
    _env.ps1                 shared: auto-detect SDK + JDK, parse manifest.xml
    build.ps1                compile only (debug)
    push.ps1                 push existing .prg
    run.ps1                  sim + compile + push
    watch.ps1                auto-rebuild on save
    release.ps1              release-stripped build for one device
    package.ps1              .iq package for all manifest products
  posix/                     Bash — macOS + Linux
    _env.sh                  shared: OS-aware paths, JDK chain, manifest parse
    build.sh, push.sh, run.sh, watch.sh, release.sh, package.sh

references/                  all docs the skill consults
  index.md                   map: what's where, when to open it
  connect-iq-docs/           MIRROR of developer.garmin.com/connect-iq
    reference/               sdk/api — version-pinned: api/ (Toybox) + monkey-c/ + reference-guides/
    portal/                  program/policy/concept docs: basics, core-topics, ux, faq, store rules
  commands/                  per-command behavior contract
  guides/                    task workflows (custom fonts, simulator data)
  catalogs/                  curated lookups (sensor catalog)
  troubleshooting.md         known errors + fixes

Dispatch

The script paths above are relative to this skill's own folder. When dispatching, expand to the absolute path on the user's machine — the location depends on install mode:

• Standalone install: <workspace>/.claude/skills/garmin-dev/scripts/<os>/<script>
• Plugin install (--plugin-dir or marketplace): plugin install dir + /skills/garmin-dev/scripts/<os>/<script>

Either way, run the script from the user's project root (where manifest.xml lives), not from the skill folder.

Claude Code invocation

• build.ps1 / build.sh and release.ps1 / release.sh exit when compile finishes — run foreground.
• run.ps1 / run.sh, push.ps1 / push.sh, watch.ps1 / watch.sh are long-lived (block on monkeydo log stream). Pass run_in_background: true in the PowerShell / Bash tool call; do not wait for exit.

About _env

_env.ps1 (Windows) and _env.sh (POSIX) are dot-sourced by every other script. They handle:

• JDK detection — uses JAVA_HOME if set + valid, else searches common install paths per OS. Throws a clear error with install instructions if nothing found.
• SDK detection — picks the newest connectiq-sdk-<os>-* directory in Garmin's standard install location. Throws if none found.
• Project name — defaults to $(basename pwd) lowercased. Override by editing line 1 of _env if you want a different binary name.
• Device id — parsed from manifest.xml first <iq:product> entry.

Result: no per-machine paths anywhere in _env. The same file works on every user's machine.

Operating rules

• Answer Connect IQ questions by retrieval, not recall — follow this procedure (it is what makes the skill right for any question, not just pre-mapped ones). Do this BEFORE reading the user's source code:
  1. Shortlist from the indexes (cheap) — never invent a path. Start at connect-iq-docs/index.md, then drill into the matching section index: portal/connect-iq-basics/index.md (starting a new project, app types, jungle intro), portal/core-topics/index.md (44 concept guides), reference/api/index.md, reference/monkey-c/index.md, reference/reference-guides/index.md, portal/ux-guidelines/index.md (UX design principles — when/why), portal/personality-library/index.md (stock UI components — how to show a toast / confirmation / progress bar / prompt), portal/device-reference/index.md, portal/index.md (store/publishing/policy, monetization, FAQ), plus our guides/index.md and catalogs/sensors.md. Pick the 2–4 files whose one-line descriptions best fit the user's words. Weight the user's exact Garmin terms heavily — proper nouns like "Data Color", "Accent Color", "Glance", "Complication" point straight at the feature that defines them.
  2. Verify by reading — do NOT trust the index blurb or a quick-map. Open the shortlisted files and read them; confirm each against what the user literally said and their context (target device from manifest.xml, app type). A quick-map / topic-guide entry is only a candidate to verify, never the answer.
  3. Rank and compare. Decide which file actually answers it, and watch for two candidates that both look plausible but lead to different answers (e.g. Watch Face Configurations vs App Settings — same goal, different feature, different device support).
  4. Decide: clear winner → answer + cite the file · two diverge materially → present the distinction and route by the user's device/context · all weak or genuinely ambiguous → ask the user ("Do you mean A, B, or C?") rather than guess. A "file not found" means you fabricated a path instead of reading an index — go back to step 1.
  5. Only now read the user's source, grounded in the doc. The docs hold platform and device constraints that code analysis cannot reveal.
  6. Separate fact from inference — this is where most wrong answers come from. State only what you can point to in a doc; mark anything you deduce as an inference, not a fact. Never assert a device or feature limitation you cannot cite — quote the doc, verify it, or ask. Take the user's stated facts at face value: if they say a downloaded app already configures on their device, that is evidence the device supports some configuration path — engage it, don't explain it away. Do not manufacture a plausible-sounding reason to justify a conclusion you jumped to.
• Never invoke monkeyc / monkeydo / monkeyc.bat / monkeydo.bat directly. Always go through scripts/<os>/<command> — _env auto-detects SDK + JDK + project + device, and direct invocation skips all of that.
• After any rendering change: build → push → verify visually in the simulator. Type checking and unit tests verify code correctness, not feature correctness. If the simulator is unavailable, say so explicitly — do not claim success.
• Cite the reference file when answering SDK questions. E.g. "per references/connect-iq-docs/reference/api/graphics-dc.md, Dc.drawArc truncates Float silently." Recalling from memory is unreliable — the cache documents project-observed gotchas that contradict the official docs.
• Doc tiers — use the right layer, in order. Concept / how-to / "what can it do / when to use" → connect-iq-docs/portal/core-topics/ (start here — e.g. native UI widgets like Menu2/Picker live in native-controls.md, settings in properties-and-app-settings.md). connect-iq-docs/reference/api/*.md is a condensed class + enum list — for exact method signatures (params, returns, options dicts) read the full API reference: the SDK's doc/Toybox/.../<Class>.html (identical content to developer.garmin.com/connect-iq/api-docs, shipped local with the SDK). Don't infer a signature from the condensed .md or from memory — open the full page.
• Check references/catalogs/sensors.md before claiming a sensor API exists. The catalog includes the "NOT available" walled-garden list (Sleep Score, HRV Status, Training Load) with workarounds.
• Handle null / absent values explicitly, and keep the layout stable. Sensor and profile values can be null; pick a placeholder and make sure the layout does not shift when a value is missing. (The exact placeholder is a project design choice — not the skill's to mandate.)
• Never commit developer_key. It's the per-developer signing identity; the store rejects uploads signed by a different key.
• Never write to the user's CLAUDE.md or to memory from this skill. Project name + device come from manifest.xml; SDK + JDK are auto-detected. There is no skill-managed config that needs remembering.

When NOT to use this skill

• Inventing the visual/creative design — what the face should look like, the aesthetic, the brand feel. The skill answers the technical how (which API, what the platform permits, the resource/setting wiring) grounded in the cached docs; it does not choose the look for you.
• Garmin platforms outside Connect IQ — BaseCamp, Express, fitness-equipment SDKs, etc. Different toolchains.
• Connect IQ Mobile SDK (iOS / Android companion apps). Separate SDK with its own build flow.
• Editing the SDK itself. This skill consumes the SDK; it does not modify it.

Worked example — diagnosing a render bug

User: "BUILD SUCCESSFUL but the time field looks chopped off on the right."

1. Verify build status. Read commands/build.md — BUILD SUCCESSFUL confirms compile passed. Rendering bugs are runtime, not compile-time. Move on.
2. Re-push and observe. Run scripts/windows/run.ps1 (or scripts/posix/run.sh) — push to sim, confirm the symptom visually. Yes, the right edge of the time digits is missing.
3. Consult the API reference for the relevant call. Read connect-iq-docs/reference/api/graphics-dc.md for dc.setColor / drawText semantics.
4. Spot the cause. The code called setColor(fg, COLOR_BLACK) before drawText. The bg argument fills the full font bounding box — not just the glyph silhouette — so it black-rectangles anything drawn earlier in that bbox area. This is a known SDK gotcha worth flagging in the project's own CLAUDE.md if the user hasn't yet.
5. Fix. Change to setColor(fg, COLOR_TRANSPARENT).
6. Re-build + re-push + verify in sim. Right edge of time is intact.
7. Done.

The skill's value: dispatching the right tool (run.ps1) + pointing at the right reference (reference/api/graphics-dc.md). The diagnosis is the user's domain knowledge plus the cached gotcha — neither comes from skill defaults.

Worked example — applying the retrieval procedure

User: "How do I make the colors / which data field shows configurable?"

1. Shortlist from the indexes. The request can map to more than one Connect IQ feature. Scan the section indexes and shortlist the candidates — weight the user's exact terms, but do not conclude yet.
2. Read the candidates — not just the index blurbs. Each names a real mechanism with its own availability conditions (which device / API level / app type) and its own wiring. Note where they agree and where they diverge.
3. Bring in context, separating fact from inference. Read the target from manifest.xml. Then check what the docs actually say about that device or feature: if a doc states the condition, quote it; if the docs are silent (e.g. a device page doesn't mention the feature), that is an inference, not a fact — flag it as such.
4. Decide or ask. If one mechanism clearly fits both the user's words and their device → answer and cite it. If the candidates diverge and you cannot confirm which the user means, or whether their device qualifies → present the options and ask, rather than picking one. Do not invent a requirement (e.g. a hardware constraint that no doc states) to force a single answer.
5. Only then read the user's code, grounded in the confirmed mechanism. Build → push → verify in the sim.

This example shows the method — it deliberately reaches no fixed answer, because the right one depends on the actual device and on confirming the user's intent. Don't lift a conclusion from an example; run the steps for the case in front of you.

Per-OS notes

• Windows: Get-Process simulator for sim check. Start-Sleep 2 after launch. JDK chain: JAVA_HOME → ~/.jdks → Microsoft → Eclipse Adoptium → Oracle Java.
• macOS: pgrep -x simulator for sim check. Sim launched via open -a. JDK chain: JAVA_HOME → /Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/*-17* → Homebrew openjdk@17.
• Linux: Same Bash scripts as macOS. JDK chain: JAVA_HOME → /usr/lib/jvm/java-17-* → /opt/jdk-17*. Garmin officially supports Ubuntu LTS — other distros may need extra Qt libraries (libxcb-xinerama0, etc.) for the simulator.

When in doubt about a per-OS edge case, fall through to troubleshooting.md.