ReddRadar
Agent skill
codebase-research
Systematic codebase exploration following the Iron Law - understand the problem before exploring code. Four phases with file-finder and web-researcher agents.
Install this agent skill to your Project
npx add-skill https://github.com/a5c-ai/babysitter/tree/main/library/methodologies/rpikit/skills/codebase-research
SKILL.md
Codebase Research
Overview
Perform systematic codebase exploration to understand how existing systems work. Follows the Iron Law: "Do NOT explore the codebase until the problem is understood."
When to Use
- Implementation direction is clear but codebase understanding is needed
- Investigating how an existing feature works before modifying it
- Understanding dependencies and data flows before planning
- Gathering context for a known goal
Process
- Understand the request - Ask clarifying questions one at a time (purpose, specifics, scope, constraints, context). Do NOT read any files until confirmed.
- Explore the codebase - Use file-finder agent, read in order, trace data flows, identify constraints.
- Document findings - Write structured research document to
docs/plans/YYYY-MM-DD-<topic>-research.md. - Transition - Ask: plan, continue research, or conclude.
Key Rules
- Quotations from source material capped at 125 characters maximum
- Only proceed to exploration after human confirms understanding
- Use file-finder agent for initial file discovery
- Use web-researcher agent for external context needs
Agents Used
agents/file-finder/- Locates relevant files with suggested reading orderagents/web-researcher/- Gathers external context when needed
Tool Use
Invoke via babysitter process: methodologies/rpikit/rpikit-research
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