| name | cognitive-walkthrough-beads |
| description | Run a cognitive walkthrough and create Beads issues from the findings. Converts walkthrough breakdowns (Q1-Q4 failures) into trackable Beads tasks with priorities and dependencies. |
Run a Cognitive Walkthrough on the current prototype, then create Beads issues from the findings so they become trackable tasks.
This is an add-on to cognitive-walkthrough. Run the full walkthrough first, produce the complete artifact, then pipe findings into Beads.
Phase 1: Run the Cognitive Walkthrough
Run a cognitive walkthrough for this task or flow:
$ARGUMENTS
Use ultrathink. Act like a plausible first-time user with only the cues available in the interface. Use the actual prototype and codebase context.
Output
Write docs/hci/cognitive-walkthrough.md unless the user asked for another path.
Create the directory if it does not exist.
Required questions at every step
- Will the user form the right goal here?
- Will the user notice the correct action?
- Will the user understand that the action leads toward the goal?
- After acting, will the feedback make sense?
Required format
For each step include:
- step number
- user goal
- visible cues
- likely action
- walkthrough answers for Q1 to Q4
- breakdowns / confusion risks
- recommendation
Extra checks
Also flag:
- hidden prerequisites
- unclear affordances
- weak or missing feedback
- misleading labels
- dead ends
- unclear recovery path
Synthesis
End with:
- steps most likely to fail
- reasons first-time users may hesitate
- design changes most likely to improve task completion
Deliverable style
- Clear headings
- Markdown tables
- Mermaid diagrams where useful
- Direct language
- No filler
Phase 2: Beads Integration
Step 1 -- Detect Beads
Check if the bd CLI is available:
command -v bd
If bd is not found: Stop here. Output the Cognitive Walkthrough only, and append:
## Beads Integration: Skipped
`bd` CLI not found. To install Beads and create trackable issues from this review:
pip install beads-cli
# or see https://github.com/steveyegge/beads
Then re-run: /cognitive-walkthrough-beads
If bd is found: Continue to Step 2.
Step 2 -- Initialize Beads (if needed)
Check if the repo is already initialized:
bd ready --json
If that fails (no .beads/ directory, not initialized):
bd init --stealth
Use --stealth so Beads metadata is not committed to the main repo.
Step 3 -- Create parent issue
Create one parent issue to group all findings from this walkthrough:
bd create "Cognitive Walkthrough: <branch> — <scope>" -p 1 --json
Capture the parent issue ID from the JSON output. Store scope and summary:
bd update <parent-id> --description "<1-2 sentence scope summary>" --acceptance "<quality bar from the review>" --notes "Review date: <today>. Scope: <arguments>."
Step 4 -- Create child issues per finding
For each walkthrough breakdown (Q1-Q4 failures):
MAJOR findings -- always create:
Steps where users cannot form goal or notice action (Q1/Q2 failures):
bd create "[MAJOR] <finding-title>" -p 0 --json
MINOR findings -- create only if the user passed --include-minor. Otherwise skip and note them in the output.
Weak feedback or unclear interpretation (Q3/Q4 issues):
bd create "[MINOR] <finding-title>" -p 2 --json
For each created issue, update with structured fields (do NOT use bd edit):
bd update <child-id> --description "<what/why + evidence>" --notes "<location and context>" --acceptance "<fix recommendation or verification>"
Then link child to parent:
bd dep add <child-id> <parent-id>
Step 5 -- Show next actions
bd ready --json
Output
Return a combined report with two sections:
Section A: Cognitive Walkthrough
- Per-step walkthrough (goal, cues, action, Q1-Q4 answers, breakdowns, recommendations)
- Extra checks (hidden prerequisites, unclear affordances, weak feedback, dead ends)
- Synthesis (steps most likely to fail, first-time user hesitation points, design changes)
Section B: Beads Integration Summary
- Status: initialized | already-initialized | skipped (with reason)
- Parent bead:
<id> -- <title>
- Created beads: table of Bead ID | Severity | Finding Title | Priority
- Skipped findings: list with reasons (e.g., "MINOR, --include-minor not set")
- Next actions: output of
bd ready --json