How do I install the Prototype skill?

Run npx skillmds@latest add mblauberg/prototype in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

Is Prototype safe to use?

This skill has not completed SkillMD's automated safety review yet. SkillMD never runs a skill's scripts for you; review the SKILL.md before installing.

Which AI agents work with Prototype?

This skill is tagged as working with Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex. SKILL.md is an open format, so most agents that read a skills directory can load it too.

Is Prototype free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free, and the skill stays under its author's original license.

Who published Prototype?

mblauberg (@mblauberg) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Prototype by mblauberg — Agent Skill

Name: Prototype
Author: mblauberg

File contents

prototype: spike to learn, then throw it away

Some uncertainty is cheaper to build through than to talk through. A prototype exists to answer ONE named question; the deliverable is the answer, never the code.

Contract (agree before writing code)

The question: one sentence, falsifiable. "Can X stream 10k rows without buffering?" not "explore X".
Timebox: default 30 to 60 min of agent work. Hit the box with no answer → that IS a finding (question too big; split it or grill further).
Kill criteria: what result answers the question either way.
Where it lives: an authorised, manifest-owned scratch dir outside production source. Never import it from real code or touch external systems, credentials or user data without separate authority.

Rules

Build only the checks needed to answer the question. Production quality gates do not apply to disposable scratch code; evidence, authority and containment do.
Cheat aggressively: hardcode data, stub auth, fake the network. Only the question's variable needs to be real.
One question per spike. A second question mid-spike → note it, finish, spike it separately if it still matters.
Harvest, then retire. Put the finding and evidence in the owning spec, decision record or scoping thread when artifact authority exists. Remove only paths proven run-owned and explicitly authorised; otherwise quarantine or hand them back with a named cleanup action.
Prototype code never "graduates" to production. Productionisation routes through scope when decisions changed, then implement; rebuild the smallest production solution with the appropriate test/refactor method.

Harvest format (into the owning doc/thread)

**Spike:** <question>  (YYYY-MM-DD, timebox 45m)
**Answer:** yes/no/partial — <one paragraph, numbers where measured>
**Evidence:** <command run, output, or measurement>
**Implication:** <what the spec/decision now says because of this>

Red flags

"The spike works, let's ship it" → scope any changed decision, then use implement; do not wire the spike into production.
Spike touching production files or secrets → wrong dir, stop.
No timebox agreed → not a spike, just unscoped wandering.
Answer known from docs/a search in <10 min → didn't need a spike.

---name: prototypedescription: Use for an authorised, timeboxed throwaway build that answers one feasibility question. Not for production code, settled requirements, or debugging known breakage; use implement, scope, or diagnose.---# prototype: spike to learn, then throw it awaySome uncertainty is cheaper to build through than to talk through. Aprototype exists to answer ONE named question; the deliverable is theanswer, never the code.## Contract (agree before writing code)1. **The question**: one sentence, falsifiable. "Can X stream 10k rows without buffering?" not "explore X".2. **Timebox**: default 30 to 60 min of agent work. Hit the box with no answer → that IS a finding (question too big; split it or grill further).3. **Kill criteria**: what result answers the question either way.4. **Where it lives**: an authorised, manifest-owned scratch dir outside production source. Never import it from real code or touch external systems, credentials or user data without separate authority.## Rules- Build only the checks needed to answer the question. Production quality gates do not apply to disposable scratch code; evidence, authority and containment do.- **Cheat aggressively**: hardcode data, stub auth, fake the network. Only the question's variable needs to be real.- **One question per spike.** A second question mid-spike → note it, finish, spike it separately if it still matters.- **Harvest, then retire.** Put the finding and evidence in the owning spec, decision record or scoping thread when artifact authority exists. Remove only paths proven run-owned and explicitly authorised; otherwise quarantine or hand them back with a named cleanup action.- **Prototype code never "graduates" to production.** Productionisation routes through `scope` when decisions changed, then `implement`; rebuild the smallest production solution with the appropriate test/refactor method.## Harvest format (into the owning doc/thread)```markdown**Spike:** <question> (YYYY-MM-DD, timebox 45m)**Answer:** yes/no/partial — <one paragraph, numbers where measured>**Evidence:** <command run, output, or measurement>**Implication:** <what the spec/decision now says because of this>```## Red flags- "The spike works, let's ship it" → scope any changed decision, then use `implement`; do not wire the spike into production.- Spike touching production files or secrets → wrong dir, stop.- No timebox agreed → not a spike, just unscoped wandering.- Answer known from docs/a search in <10 min → didn't need a spike.

Frequently asked questions

Prototype