Prototype
A prototype is throwaway code that answers a question. The question decides the shape.
Pick a branch
Identify which question is being answered — from the user's prompt, the surrounding code, or by asking if the user is around:
- "Does this logic / state model feel right?" → LOGIC.md. Build a tiny interactive terminal app that pushes the state machine through cases that are hard to reason about on paper.
- "What should this look like?" → UI.md. Generate several radically different UI variations on a single route, switchable via a URL search param and a floating bottom bar.
Neither branch builds a real page: if the user wants one polished production UI rather than several throwaway comparisons, hand off to ui-ux-pro-max or hallmark instead.
The two branches produce very different artifacts — getting this wrong wastes the whole prototype. If the question is genuinely ambiguous and the user isn't reachable, default to whichever branch better matches the surrounding code (a backend module → logic; a page or component → UI) and state the assumption at the top of the prototype.
Rules that apply to both
- Throwaway from day one, and clearly marked as such. Locate the prototype code close to where it will actually be used (next to the module or page it's prototyping for) so context is obvious — but name it so a casual reader can see it's a prototype, not production. For throwaway UI routes, obey whatever routing convention the project already uses; don't invent a new top-level structure.
- One command to run. Whatever the project's existing task runner supports —
pnpm <name>, python <path>, bun <path>, etc. The user must be able to start it without thinking.
- No persistence by default. State lives in memory. Persistence is the thing the prototype is checking, not something it should depend on. If the question explicitly involves a database, hit a scratch DB or a local file with a clear "PROTOTYPE — wipe me" name.
- Skip the polish. No tests, no error handling beyond what makes the prototype runnable, no abstractions. The point is to learn something fast and then delete it.
- Surface the state. After every action (logic) or on every variant switch (UI), print or render the full relevant state so the user can see what changed.
- Delete or absorb when done. When the prototype has answered its question, either delete it or fold the validated decision into the real code — don't leave it rotting in the repo.
When done
The answer is the only thing worth keeping from a prototype. Capture it somewhere durable (commit message, ADR, issue, or a NOTES.md next to the prototype) along with the question it was answering. If the user is around, that capture is a quick conversation; if not, leave the placeholder so they (or you, on the next pass) can fill in the verdict before deleting the prototype.
Use with
to-prd — when a logic prototype produces a state-machine or schema snippet that encodes a decision more precisely than prose, inline that snippet in the PRD's Implementation Decisions (the to-prd template explicitly allows this exception for prototype outputs).grill-with-docs — when the user is ambivalent between options, run a grill session first to surface what question the prototype should answer. A prototype that answers the wrong question is pure waste.improve-codebase-architecture — when a logic prototype validates a new module shape, this skill is the right next step to plan how to fold it back into the real codebase as a deep module.
Origin
Adapted from mattpocock/skills — engineering/prototype. License: MIT.
1---2name: prototype3description: Build a throwaway prototype to flush out a design before committing to it. Routes between two branches — a runnable terminal app for state/business-logic questions, or several radically different UI variations toggleable from one route. Use ONLY for two scenarios — (1) the user needs to compare multiple structurally different UI approaches side by side before picking one, or (2) the user needs to manually step through a state machine / data model that is hard to reason about on paper. For building a real page or polished UI, use ui-ux-pro-max / hallmark instead — this skill produces throwaway code.4---56# Prototype78A prototype is **throwaway code that answers a question**. The question decides the shape.910## Pick a branch1112Identify which question is being answered — from the user's prompt, the surrounding code, or by asking if the user is around:1314- **"Does this logic / state model feel right?"** → [LOGIC.md](LOGIC.md). Build a tiny interactive terminal app that pushes the state machine through cases that are hard to reason about on paper.15- **"What should this look like?"** → [UI.md](UI.md). Generate several radically different UI variations on a single route, switchable via a URL search param and a floating bottom bar.1617Neither branch builds a real page: if the user wants one polished production UI rather than several throwaway comparisons, hand off to `ui-ux-pro-max` or `hallmark` instead.1819The two branches produce very different artifacts — getting this wrong wastes the whole prototype. If the question is genuinely ambiguous and the user isn't reachable, default to whichever branch better matches the surrounding code (a backend module → logic; a page or component → UI) and state the assumption at the top of the prototype.2021## Rules that apply to both22231. **Throwaway from day one, and clearly marked as such.** Locate the prototype code close to where it will actually be used (next to the module or page it's prototyping for) so context is obvious — but name it so a casual reader can see it's a prototype, not production. For throwaway UI routes, obey whatever routing convention the project already uses; don't invent a new top-level structure.242. **One command to run.** Whatever the project's existing task runner supports — `pnpm <name>`, `python <path>`, `bun <path>`, etc. The user must be able to start it without thinking.253. **No persistence by default.** State lives in memory. Persistence is the thing the prototype is *checking*, not something it should depend on. If the question explicitly involves a database, hit a scratch DB or a local file with a clear "PROTOTYPE — wipe me" name.264. **Skip the polish.** No tests, no error handling beyond what makes the prototype *runnable*, no abstractions. The point is to learn something fast and then delete it.275. **Surface the state.** After every action (logic) or on every variant switch (UI), print or render the full relevant state so the user can see what changed.286. **Delete or absorb when done.** When the prototype has answered its question, either delete it or fold the validated decision into the real code — don't leave it rotting in the repo.2930## When done3132The *answer* is the only thing worth keeping from a prototype. Capture it somewhere durable (commit message, ADR, issue, or a `NOTES.md` next to the prototype) along with the question it was answering. If the user is around, that capture is a quick conversation; if not, leave the placeholder so they (or you, on the next pass) can fill in the verdict before deleting the prototype.3334## Use with3536- `to-prd` — when a logic prototype produces a state-machine or schema snippet that encodes a decision more precisely than prose, inline that snippet in the PRD's Implementation Decisions (the to-prd template explicitly allows this exception for prototype outputs).37- `grill-with-docs` — when the user is ambivalent between options, run a grill session first to surface what question the prototype should answer. A prototype that answers the wrong question is pure waste.38- `improve-codebase-architecture` — when a logic prototype validates a new module shape, this skill is the right next step to plan how to fold it back into the real codebase as a deep module.3940## Origin4142Adapted from [mattpocock/skills](https://github.com/mattpocock/skills) — `engineering/prototype`. License: MIT.
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