pr-research

name	pr-research
description	Research an upstream repo.
practices	["wiki-knowledge-surface","legacy-code-seams","pragmatic-programmer"]
hexagonal_role	driven-adapter
consumes	["external-api"]
produces	["result.json"]
context_rel	[]
skill_api_version	1
context	{"window":"fork","intent":{"mode":"task"},"sections":{"exclude":["HISTORY"]},"intel_scope":"topic"}
license	MIT
compatibility	Requires git, gh CLI
metadata	{"author":"AI Platform Team","version":"1.0.0","tier":"contribute","internal":false}
allowed-tools	Read, Write, Bash, Grep, Glob
output_contract	.agents/research/YYYY-MM-DD-upstream-*.md

PR Research Skill

Systematic exploration of upstream repositories before contributing.

Overview

Research an external codebase to understand how to contribute effectively. This is the FIRST step before planning or implementing an open source contribution.

When to Use:

• Before contributing to an external repository
• Starting a new open source contribution
• Evaluating whether to contribute to a project

When NOT to Use:

• Researching your own codebase (use $research)
• Already familiar with the project's guidelines

---

Workflow

-1. Prior Work Check    -> BLOCKING: Check for existing issues/PRs
0.  CONTRIBUTING.md     -> MANDATORY: Find contribution guidelines
1.  Repository Setup    -> Clone/identify upstream repo
2.  Guidelines Analysis -> Templates, CODE_OF_CONDUCT
3.  PR Archaeology      -> Analyze merged PRs, commit patterns
4.  Maintainer Research -> Response patterns, review expectations
5.  Issue Discovery     -> Find contribution opportunities
6.  Output              -> Write research document

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Phase -1: Prior Work Check (BLOCKING)

CRITICAL: Before ANY research, check if someone is already working on this.

# Search for open issues on this topic
gh issue list -R <owner/repo> --state open --search "<topic keywords>" --limit 20

# Search for open PRs that might address this
gh pr list -R <owner/repo> --state open --search "<topic keywords>" --limit 20

# Check for recently merged PRs (might already be fixed)
gh pr list -R <owner/repo> --state merged --search "<topic keywords>" --limit 10

Finding	Action
Open issue exists	Link to it, don't create duplicate
Open PR exists	Don't duplicate work
Recently merged PR	Verify fix, no work needed
No prior work found	Proceed to Phase 0

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