Use when starting feature work that needs isolation from current workspace or before executing implementation plans - creates isolated git worktrees following GitLens conventions
Use whenever any UI-bearing work touches a running instance — building or fixing a feature, ship-gating, auditing, OR debugging visible bugs (flaky behavior, intermittent rendering, "sometimes does X" reports, hover/focus/animation glitches, layout overflow). Keep a running instance in the loop and exercise it as a user would. Adaptive depth from tactical fix-loop to ship-gate audit. Not for pure-logic diff review.
Use for one-off / single-question inspection of the running GitLens extension — examining UI state, reading logs, checking feature flags, dispatching a command, or asking "what does the live DOM look like right now". Reference for `vscode-inspector` MCP primitives. For iterative debug-and-fix loops on UI bugs (sweep → fix → re-verify), use `/live-exercise` instead.
Investigate bugs — single-issue deep root cause analysis or batch parallel investigation from a report or issue list
Use when you want to iterate on a feature interactively with the user watching a running instance — pair-programming rhythm for UI-heavy work, redesigns, copy tightening, layout exploration, or any "let me just show you what I want" session. Not for systematic audit (/live-exercise) or perf-tuning (/live-perf).
Use when you want to measure and improve the performance of a feature in the running extension, hunt regressions, or perf-tune before shipping. Standalone for perf-tuning an existing feature; also invoked by /live-exercise Phase 7. Not for static code review without measurement.
Use to audit a component, file, or directory for WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility compliance. Detects ARIA anti-patterns, missing semantics, keyboard gaps, and color-only information. Safety-first — refuses to emit fixes that would create a new accessibility bug. Scope is always explicit; do not use for page-level flow or cross-program planning.
Use to audit a page, view, or composed flow for WCAG 2.1 AA compliance at the composition level - landmarks, heading hierarchy, tab order across components, focus handoff on modal open/close, live-region conflicts. Scope is page/view, NOT component internals. Safety-first - refuses to emit fixes that would create a new a11y bug. For single-component audits use /a11y-audit; for cross-program planning use /a11y-remediate.