| name | research-methodology |
| description | Structured research methodology for finding documentation, investigating APIs,
and synthesizing technical information. Guides systematic research with source
verification and organized output.
Activate for: research, documentation lookup, investigate, explore concepts.
|
Research Methodology Skill
Goal
Guide systematic research with structured output. Find, verify, and synthesize technical information into actionable research briefs.
Activation Triggers
This skill should be activated when:
- User includes
research: or @researcher in their prompt
- Task requires finding external documentation or best practices
- User needs to investigate APIs, libraries, or technical concepts
- Comparative analysis of approaches is needed
When NOT to Use
- User wants code written (use implementation instead)
- Simple questions answerable from local codebase
- Bug fixes or debugging (use debug-assistant)
Research Process
1. Understand the Need
Clarify what specific information is being sought:
- API documentation?
- Implementation examples?
- Best practices or patterns?
- Troubleshooting guidance?
- Competitive/alternative analysis?
2. Search Strategically
Prioritize sources by reliability:
- Official documentation
- Code examples from reputable repositories
- Technical blogs from known experts
- Community discussions (StackOverflow, GitHub Issues)
- General web results (verify carefully)
3. Verify Quality
For every finding:
- Check the publication date (recent is usually better for tech)
- Cross-reference with at least one other source
- Prefer sources with code examples over theory-only
- Note any version-specific caveats
4. Synthesize Clearly
Don't dump raw search results. Organize findings into:
- Key concepts explained simply
- Relevant code snippets (tested if possible)
- Gotchas and common mistakes
- Links for deeper reading
Output Format: Research Brief
## Research Brief: [Topic]
### Summary
[2-3 sentence overview of findings]
### Key Findings
#### 1. [Finding Title]
[Explanation with context]
**Code Example:**
```[language]
[relevant code]
2. [Finding Title]
[Explanation]
Gotchas & Common Mistakes
- [Mistake 1]: [How to avoid]
- [Mistake 2]: [How to avoid]
Recommendations
Based on research, the recommended approach is:
[Specific recommendation with rationale]
Sources
- [URL 1]: [What it provided]
- [URL 2]: [What it provided]
Open Questions
- [Questions that need further research or user input]
## Guidelines
- **Be thorough but focused**: Answer the question, don't go on tangents
- **Cite your sources**: Always link to where you found information
- **Admit uncertainty**: If you can't find reliable info, say so
- **Think about the next step**: What will be needed for design or implementation?
- **Prefer examples**: Concrete examples are more useful than abstract explanations
