# Robdmc Claude Tools Skills

> Scribe

- Skill: `tomevault-io/robdmc-claude-tools-skills` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 2 files)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add tomevault-io/robdmc-claude-tools-skills`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/tomevault-io/robdmc-claude-tools-skills/raw
- Safety review: pending (external: skill-scanner PASS, skillspector PASS)
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: tomevault-io (https://skillmd.com/u/tomevault-io)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/tomevault-io/robdmc-claude-tools-skills

---


# Scribe

The scribe maintains a narrative log of your exploratory work, can archive important files, and tracks git state.

**Address naturally:** "hey scribe, log this" / "scribe, save this notebook" / "scribe, what did we try yesterday?"

## Quick Reference

| Mode | Trigger | Action |
|------|---------|--------|
| Log | "scribe, log this" | Propose → confirm → prepare → Edit → finalize |
| Git entry | "scribe, git entry" | Same flow with `--git-entry` flag (creates commit) |
| Archive | "scribe, save notebook.ipynb" | Same flow with `--archive` flag |
| Restore | "scribe, restore the ETL script" | Copy from assets |
| Query | "scribe, what did we try?" | Search and summarize |

**Important:** Git entries ONLY happen when user explicitly says "git". Never auto-promote.

## CRITICAL: Always Propose Before Finalizing

**NEVER** run `entry.py prepare` or `entry.py finalize` without first:
1. Showing the user the proposed entry text (title + body) in a markdown block
2. Getting explicit user approval ("ok", "yes", "looks good", etc.)

This applies to ALL entry types (log, git-entry, archive).

### Example Propose Step

> Here's the entry I'll create:
>
> **Title:** Migrate signup forecast to Parquet format
>
> **Body:** Removed all DuckDB dependencies, switching to a simpler Parquet-based workflow. The notebook now loads from `subscriptions.parquet` and saves to `signup_forecast.parquet`...
>
> **Files touched:** `compute_signup_forecast.nb.py`
>
> Does this look good?

## Directory Structure

```
.scribe/
├── 2026-01-23.md      # Daily log files (tracked in git)
├── assets/            # Archived files (gitignored)
└── diffs/             # Legacy diffs (gitignored, not created for new entries)
```

## Entry Flow

1. **Assess** — Check context, recent logs, `git status`
2. **Propose** — Draft the full entry text (title and body) and show it to the user in a markdown block. Ask "Does this look good?" or "Should I proceed?"
3. **Confirm** — STOP and WAIT for explicit user approval ("ok", "yes", "looks good", etc.). Do NOT proceed until user confirms.
4. **Prepare** — `entry.py prepare [options]` → outputs staging file path
5. **Edit title** — Replace `__TITLE__` in staging file
6. **Edit body** — Replace `__BODY__` in staging file
7. **Finalize** — `entry.py finalize` → validates, appends to log, archives files

### Prepare Command

```bash
uv run --project {SKILL_DIR}/scripts python {SKILL_DIR}/scripts/entry.py prepare [options]
```

| Option | Description |
|--------|-------------|
| `--git-entry` | Create git commit when finalizing |
| `--touched "file.py:desc"` | Add to **Files touched:** section (repeatable) |
| `--archive "file.py:desc"` | Archive file when finalizing (repeatable) |
| `--related ID` | Add to **Related:** section with auto title lookup (repeatable) |

Outputs the staging file path (e.g., `.scribe/__2026-01-23-14-35__.md`).

### Staging File

The staging file contains placeholders to fill:

```markdown
---
id: 2026-01-23-14-35
timestamp: "14:35"
title: __TITLE__
git: abc123
_pending:
  git_entry: false
---
## 14:35 — __TITLE__

__BODY__

**Files touched:**
- `etl.py` — Added coalesce logic

---
```

Use the Edit tool to replace `__TITLE__` and `__BODY__` with actual content.

### Finalize Command

```bash
uv run --project {SKILL_DIR}/scripts python {SKILL_DIR}/scripts/entry.py finalize
```

This validates placeholders are filled, strips `_pending`, archives files, appends to daily log, and (if git-entry) creates commit.

## Scripts

Scripts in `{SKILL_DIR}/scripts/`. Run with: `uv run --project {SKILL_DIR}/scripts python {SKILL_DIR}/scripts/<script.py>`

| Script | Purpose |
|--------|---------|
| `entry.py prepare` | Create staging file with placeholders |
| `entry.py finalize` | Complete entry (archive, append, commit) |
| `entry.py abort` | Delete staging file (recover from interruption) |
| `entry.py status` | Show pending entry state |
| `entry.py last --with-title` | Get last entry ID (for `--related`) |
| `assets.py save <id> <file>` | Archive a file |
| `assets.py list [filter]` | List archived files |
| `assets.py get <asset> --dest <dir>` | Restore a file |
| `validate.py` | Check for errors |

## Entry Structure

Daily logs (`.scribe/YYYY-MM-DD.md`) contain entries:

```markdown
---
id: 2026-01-23-14-35
timestamp: "14:35"
title: Entry title here
git: abc1234
---
## 14:35 — Entry title here

Narrative...

**Files touched:**
- `file.py` — Description

---
```

Searchable fields: `id:`, `title:`, `git:`, `mode: git-entry`, `**Related:**`, `**Archived:**`

## Querying

- **Time-based:** Read `.scribe/YYYY-MM-DD.md` directly
- **Topic-based:** `Grep` in `.scribe/`, then Read matches
- **Assets:** `assets.py list [filter]`

## Error Recovery

| Command | Use |
|---------|-----|
| `entry.py abort` | Discard pending entry |
| `entry.py status` | Check pending state |
| `entry.py edit-latest show` | View last finalized entry |
| `entry.py edit-latest delete` | Remove last entry + assets |
| `entry.py edit-latest replace --file` | Replace last entry content |

## Principles

- **Narrator, not stenographer** — Write prose, not dumps
- **Capture the why** — Not just what, but why it was tried
- **Stay concise** — Entries should be scannable
- **Preserve dead ends** — Failed approaches prevent repeats
- **Git state anchors context** — Commit hash precisely identifies code state

## Reference Files

For detailed examples: [references/entries.md](references/entries.md) | [references/querying.md](references/querying.md) | [references/recovery.md](references/recovery.md)

---
> Source: [robdmc/claude_tools](https://github.com/robdmc/claude_tools) — distributed by [TomeVault](https://tomevault.io).
<!-- tomevault:4.0:skill_md:2026-06-04 -->