name research-software description Research software tools via source code, GitHub, web. Use when creating skills, learning new tools, finding undocumented features, or bleeding-edge patterns.
research-software — Software Research
Rules: Latest STABLE tag (not main). Filter to 2025-2026. Code > Docs. Skip Stack Overflow.
Output First
Every research produces this structure:
## [Tool] vX.Y.Z (YYYY-MM-DD)
**Repo:** github.com/org/repo @ abc123
### Commands
| Task | Command | Notes |
|------|---------|-------|
### Config
| Option | Default | Notes |
|--------|---------|-------|
### Env Vars
| Variable | Purpose |
|----------|---------|
### Gotchas
- [problem]: [fix]. Source: [PR/issue/code]
### Sources
- Code: [file:line]
- PRs: #123, #456
- Posts: [url]
THE PROMPT
Research [TOOL] for [PURPOSE].
Clone to /tmp, checkout latest stable tag.
Spawn Explore agent on source. Find: CLI, config, hidden flags, env vars.
Parallel: GitHub PRs/issues, web search "[tool] 2025".
Output: skill-ready markdown.
Pipeline
git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/[org]/[repo] /tmp/[repo]-research
cd /tmp/[repo]-research && git fetch --tags && git checkout $(git describe --tags --abbrev=0)
gh pr list -R [org]/[repo] --state merged --limit 30 --json title,mergedAt
gh issue list -R [org]/[repo] --label question --limit 20
rm -rf /tmp/[repo]-research
Checklist
Detect context: Check package.json/Cargo.toml/pyproject.toml for versionsClone repo to /tmp, checkout latest stable tagExplore agent: CLI commands, config schema, hidden flags, env varsGitHub: Recent merged PRs, issues tagged "question"/"documentation"Web search: "[tool] 2025", "[tool] 2026", skip pre-2025Synthesize: Commands table, config table, gotchas, patternsCite sources: repo@commit, PR numbers, blog URLsClean up: rm -rf /tmp/[repo]-research
Source Priority
1. Source code (actual behavior)
2. Recent PRs (features being added)
3. GitHub issues (real problems)
4. Blog posts 2025-2026 (practical patterns)
5. Official docs (baseline, often outdated)
Skip: Stack Overflow, anything pre-2025, basic tutorials
Top Mistakes
Mistake Fix Using beta/canary Checkout latest stable TAG, not main Old content (pre-2025) Always add year to search queries Trusting docs over code Code wins: check actual defaults in source Missing env vars Search process.env, std::env, os.environ Forgetting cleanup rm -rf /tmp/[repo]-research when done
Key Searches
rg "hidden|experimental|unstable" /tmp/[repo]-research
rg "process\.env\." /tmp/[repo]-research --type ts
rg "std::env::" /tmp/[repo]-research --type rust
rg "os\.environ" /tmp/[repo]-research --type py
rg "os\.Getenv" /tmp/[repo]-research --type go
git log --oneline --since="2025-06-01" | head -30
Done When
Decision Tree
What are you researching?
│
├─ CLI tool (wrangler, cargo, bun)
│ Focus: src/cli/, commands, flags, env vars
│
├─ Library/Framework (React, Next.js)
│ Focus: packages/*/src/, exported APIs, deprecations
│
├─ Runtime (Bun, Deno, Node)
│ Focus: built-ins, runtime flags, compat layers
│
└─ Database/Service (D1, R2, Postgres)
Focus: query syntax, config, limits, gotchas
Key Searches by Type
Type Where to look Key searches CLI src/cli/, bin/hidden.*true, #[arg(, process.envLibrary packages/*/src/, index.tsexport , deprecated, experimentalRuntime src/, built-insflag, --, compatDatabase queries, limits limit, max, error
Deep strategies: STRATEGIES.md
Subagent: Code Investigator
Investigate /tmp/[repo]-research for [TOOL].
Find: CLI commands, config options, hidden/experimental flags, env vars.
Check git log --oneline -30 for recent changes.
Output as markdown tables.
Use model: sonnet (balance of speed + depth)
Subagent: Web Researcher
Search "[TOOL] 2025" and "[TOOL] 2026".
Find 5-10 recent tutorials, blog posts, announcements.
Extract: patterns, gotchas, tips.
Skip: Stack Overflow, anything pre-2025, basic tutorials.
Use model: haiku (fast, web-focused)
References
