Agent skill

Reference Searcher

Systematic external reference searching across documentation, open-source repositories, and web resources.

Apache-2.0Auto-check passedProductivity & Automation

Install Reference Searcher

skills CLI

$ npx skills add ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE --skill reference-searcher -a claude-code

Project install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE reference-searcher --agent claude-code

Project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/reference-searcher .claude/skills/reference-searcher && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.claude/skills/ instead of .claude/skills for a personal install. The folder must contain SKILL.md.

Claude Code skills documentation · loads skills from .claude/skills/

Paste into Claude Code

Install the "reference-searcher" agent skill from https://github.com/ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE/tree/main/skills/reference-searcher into .claude/skills/reference-searcher/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "reference-searcher", then confirm the skill loads.

Claude Code copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

$skill-installer

$skill-installer install https://github.com/ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE/tree/main/skills/reference-searcher

Type this inside Codex. $skill-installer <name> installs a curated skill from openai/skills. The installer writes to $CODEX_HOME/skills (default ~/.codex/skills). Restart Codex if the skill does not show up.

skills CLI

$ npx skills add ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE --skill reference-searcher -a codex

Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.codex/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE reference-searcher --agent codex

Project scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE.git skills-src && mkdir -p .agents/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/reference-searcher .agents/skills/reference-searcher && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.agents/skills/ instead of .agents/skills for a personal install.

Codex skills documentation · loads skills from .agents/skills/

Paste into Codex

Install the "reference-searcher" agent skill from https://github.com/ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE/tree/main/skills/reference-searcher into .agents/skills/reference-searcher/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "reference-searcher", then confirm the skill loads.

Codex copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

skills CLI

$ npx skills add ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE --skill reference-searcher -a cursor

Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.cursor/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE reference-searcher --agent cursor

Project scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE.git skills-src && mkdir -p .cursor/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/reference-searcher .cursor/skills/reference-searcher && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.cursor/skills/ instead of .cursor/skills for a personal install.

Cursor skills documentation · loads skills from .cursor/skills/, .agents/skills/, .claude/skills/, .codex/skills/

Paste into Cursor

Install the "reference-searcher" agent skill from https://github.com/ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE/tree/main/skills/reference-searcher into .cursor/skills/reference-searcher/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "reference-searcher", then confirm the skill loads.

Cursor copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

gemini skills install

$ gemini skills install https://github.com/ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE.git --path skills/reference-searcher

--scope user (default) or --scope workspace; --path is the subfolder of the repo that holds the skill; --consent skips the security confirmation prompt.

skills CLI

$ npx skills add ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE --skill reference-searcher -a gemini-cli

Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.gemini/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE reference-searcher --agent gemini-cli

Project scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE.git skills-src && mkdir -p .gemini/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/reference-searcher .gemini/skills/reference-searcher && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.gemini/skills/ instead of .gemini/skills for a personal install, then run /skills reload.

Gemini CLI skills documentation · loads skills from .gemini/skills/, .agents/skills/

Paste into Gemini CLI

Install the "reference-searcher" agent skill from https://github.com/ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE/tree/main/skills/reference-searcher into .gemini/skills/reference-searcher/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "reference-searcher", then confirm the skill loads.

Gemini CLI copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE reference-searcher

Installs for Copilot at project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Preview a skill first with gh skill preview. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).

skills CLI

$ npx skills add ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE --skill reference-searcher -a github-copilot

Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.copilot/skills/.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE.git skills-src && mkdir -p .github/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/reference-searcher .github/skills/reference-searcher && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.copilot/skills/ instead of .github/skills for a personal install. Commit .github/skills so cloud agent and code review can use it.

GitHub Copilot skills documentation · loads skills from .github/skills/, .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/

Paste into GitHub Copilot

Install the "reference-searcher" agent skill from https://github.com/ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE/tree/main/skills/reference-searcher into .github/skills/reference-searcher/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "reference-searcher", then confirm the skill loads.

GitHub Copilot copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

skills CLI

$ npx skills add ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE --skill reference-searcher -a opencode

OpenCode documents no install command of its own. Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.config/opencode/skills/.

GitHub CLI

$ gh skill install ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE reference-searcher --agent opencode

Project scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.

Manual copy

$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE.git skills-src && mkdir -p .opencode/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/reference-searcher .opencode/skills/reference-searcher && rm -rf skills-src

Use ~/.config/opencode/skills/ instead of .opencode/skills for a personal install.

OpenCode skills documentation · loads skills from .opencode/skills/, .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/

Paste into OpenCode

Install the "reference-searcher" agent skill from https://github.com/ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE/tree/main/skills/reference-searcher into .opencode/skills/reference-searcher/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "reference-searcher", then confirm the skill loads.

OpenCode copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.

Facts

Skill name: reference-searcher
GitHub stars: 253
Token cost: ~1k tokens
SKILL.md length: 364 words
Files: 1
Skills in repo: 170
Repo updated: Aug 21, 2026
First seen: Oct 9, 2026
Licence: Apache-2.0

At a glance

Systematic external reference searching across documentation, open-source repositories, and web resources.

Works in 4 steps: Start with official docs — fastest, most… → If docs insufficient — search GitHub for… → If pattern unclear — web search for… → …
Working with unfamiliar libraries
SKILL.md covers When to Use This Skill, What This Skill Does, Anti-Patterns and Example
Reaches grep.app

What it does

Reference Searcher is an agent skill from ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE. Systematic external reference searching across documentation, open-source repositories, and web resources. Use when working with unfamiliar libraries, APIs, or when needing production-quality implementation examples.

Its SKILL.md is about 1k tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. It is a single SKILL.md file with no bundled scripts.

It sits in Productivity & Automation, covering Web search. It works with GitHub. The repository describes itself as: A curated list of 180+ useful Claude Skills for Software Engineering and resources for customizing AI for SE workflows. The licence is Apache-2.0.

When your agent uses it

Working with unfamiliar libraries
Needing production-quality implementation examples

Example prompts

“/reference-searcher”

Workflow steps

4 steps, taken from the first numbered list in SKILL.md.

Start with official docs — fastest, most authoritative
If docs insufficient — search GitHub for real implementations
If pattern unclear — web search for community knowledge
Synthesize — combine findings into actionable guidance

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 4f38503. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.

Tool permissions
Pre-approves nothing: there is no allowed-tools line, so your agent's usual permission prompts apply.
From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.
Runs code
No scripts in the folder and no shell commands in SKILL.md (its code samples are bash and markdown).
From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.
Network
Hosts in commands or code, which the agent is likely to contact:
- grep.app
Also links to:
- github.com
From URLs in SKILL.md, links to its own repository left out.
Credentials
Names no API keys, tokens, secrets or passwords.
From names ending in _API_KEY, _TOKEN, _SECRET, _KEY or _PASSWORD in SKILL.md.

Context cost

Reference Searcher loads about 1k tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 59 tokens; SKILL.md has 364 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it: ~59
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches: ~1k

Estimates: characters ÷ 4, the usual rule of thumb; real counts depend on the model's tokenizer. Scripts and assets cost tokens only if the agent reads them.

Safety

Auto-check passed

The automated check found no risky patterns in SKILL.md.

Automated static check — not a guarantee. Review scripts before installing. It scans the text of SKILL.md for risky patterns (piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files, hidden Unicode, destructive commands); files beside SKILL.md are not scanned.

SKILL.md

The full file from ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE at commit 4f38503, republished under its Apache-2.0 licence (© ArabelaTso). 364 words, ~1,028 tokens.

Download SKILL.mdSave it as .claude/skills/reference-searcher/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder).

name: reference-searcher
description: Systematic external reference searching across documentation, open-source repositories, and web resources. Use when working with unfamiliar libraries, APIs, or when needing production-quality implementation examples.

Reference Searcher

Structured methodology for searching external references — official docs, open-source implementations, and web resources — to inform development decisions.

When to Use This Skill

Working with unfamiliar libraries or frameworks
Needing production-quality implementation examples
Debugging unexpected behavior from external dependencies
Finding best practices for specific patterns (auth, caching, etc.)
Evaluating library choices with real-world usage data

What This Skill Does

Search Strategy: Three Layers

Layer 1: Official Documentation

Search official docs for the specific library using web search:

bash

# Search official docs directly
# e.g., "next.js middleware authentication site:nextjs.org"
# Or use documentation MCP tools if available (e.g., Context7)

Best for: API signatures, configuration options, migration guides, official patterns.

Layer 2: Open-Source Implementation Examples (GitHub)

Search real codebases for production patterns:

bash

# Search GitHub for code patterns via grep.app or GitHub search
# e.g., https://grep.app/search?q=getServerSession%28&filter[lang][0]=TypeScript
# Or use GitHub code search: gh search code "getServerSession(" --language=TypeScript

Best for: How established projects (1000+ stars) handle specific patterns, battle-tested error handling, real-world integration examples.

Search tips:

Search for actual code patterns, not keywords
Use (?s) prefix for multi-line regex patterns
Filter by language and file path for precision
Look for repos with 1000+ stars for production quality

Layer 3: Web Search (Current Information)

Search the web for recent articles, discussions, and guides:

bash

# Web search for current information
# e.g., "OWASP JWT security best practices 2024"

Best for: Security advisories, recent breaking changes, community discussions, performance benchmarks, "why does X behave this way" questions.

Search Workflow

Start with official docs — fastest, most authoritative
If docs insufficient — search GitHub for real implementations
If pattern unclear — web search for community knowledge
Synthesize — combine findings into actionable guidance

Show full SKILL.md (147 more words)Show less

Result Evaluation

For each source found, assess:

Criterion	Check
Recency	Is this from the current major version?
Authority	Official docs > popular repos > blog posts
Completeness	Does it cover error handling and edge cases?
Applicability	Does it match our tech stack and constraints?

Output Format

markdown

## Research: [Topic]

### Official Documentation
- [Finding 1 with link]
- [Finding 2 with link]

### Production Examples
- [Repo/file]: [What pattern they use and why]
- [Repo/file]: [Alternative approach]

### Recommendation
Based on [sources], the recommended approach is [X] because [reasons].

### Caveats
- [Known limitation or gotcha]

Anti-Patterns

Searching for keywords instead of actual code patterns on GitHub
Trusting blog posts over official documentation
Using examples from outdated library versions
Skipping error handling patterns in reference code
Over-researching — stop when you have enough to proceed confidently

Example

User: "How should I implement rate limiting in Express?"

Output:

Official docs: express-rate-limit documentation — configuration options, store adapters
GitHub: 3 production repos showing Redis-backed rate limiting with sliding window
Web: OWASP rate limiting guidelines, comparison of token bucket vs sliding window
Recommendation: Use express-rate-limit with Redis store, sliding window algorithm, with specific config example

Inspired by: oh-my-opencode Librarian agent

Files

Just SKILL.md in skills/reference-searcher of ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE.

Open the folder on GitHubat commit 4f38503

Compare with similar skills

Reference Searcher next to the 5 skills that share the most tags, products or categories with it. Stars are the repository's; “used in” counts other GitHub owners with a copy.

Reference Searcher compared with similar skills
Skill	Stars	Used in	Tokens	Auto-check	Licence	Repo updated
Reference Searcher this skillArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE	253	—	~1k	Automated safety check: Pass	Apache-2.0	1 mo ago
Pi Web Searchsickn33/agentic-awesome-skills	47k	1 repos	~925	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	2 days ago
Web SearchPhilip-Cao-9527/code-note-helper	273	—	~663	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	2 mo ago
Agent ReachEdisonChenAI/agent-reach	115	1 repos	~1.3k	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	7 mo ago
Mysearchskernelx/MySearch-Proxy	159	—	~1.4k	Automated safety check: Notes	MIT	6 mo ago
Z.AI CLInumman-ali/zai-cli	110	—	~528	Automated safety check: Pass	MIT	9 mo ago

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Questions about Reference Searcher

What does Reference Searcher do?

Systematic external reference searching across documentation, open-source repositories, and web resources. Reference Searcher is an agent skill from ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE. Systematic external reference searching across documentation, open-source repositories, and web resources.

When should I use Reference Searcher?

Reference Searcher fits situations like: working with unfamiliar libraries; needing production-quality implementation examples.

How do I install Reference Searcher in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE --skill reference-searcher -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/reference-searcher in ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE) into .claude/skills/reference-searcher in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Reference Searcher in Codex?

Run `npx skills add ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE --skill reference-searcher -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/reference-searcher in ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE) into .agents/skills/reference-searcher in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Reference Searcher in Cursor, Gemini CLI or GitHub Copilot?

Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode also load SKILL.md folders. With the skills CLI, run `npx skills add ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE --skill reference-searcher -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/reference-searcher, .gemini/skills/reference-searcher, .github/skills/reference-searcher and .opencode/skills/reference-searcher in your project.

What does Reference Searcher need to run?

SKILL.md names no scripts, command-line tools or credentials: Reference Searcher is instructions for the agent only.

Does Reference Searcher access the network?

SKILL.md names 2 domains. In commands or code: grep.app; the agent is likely to contact it when it follows the instructions. As links in the text: github.com. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.

Is Reference Searcher safe to install?

Our automated static check of SKILL.md found no risky patterns, such as piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files or hidden Unicode. It is not a guarantee. Review the folder before installing.

What licence does Reference Searcher use?

Reference Searcher is published under the Apache-2.0 licence (the repository's licence). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.

How many tokens does Reference Searcher use?

About 1k tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 4.1k characters). Agents keep only the skill's name and description in context until a task matches; then they load SKILL.md in full.

What are the alternatives to Reference Searcher?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Reference Searcher: Pi Web Search (sickn33/agentic-awesome-skills, 47k stars), Web Search (Philip-Cao-9527/code-note-helper, 273 stars), Agent Reach (EdisonChenAI/agent-reach, 115 stars) and Mysearch (skernelx/MySearch-Proxy, 159 stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Reference Searcher?

ArabelaTso (a GitHub user) maintains it in ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE, which has 253 GitHub stars. The repository holds 170 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on August 21, 2026.

Source: ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.

Install Reference Searcher

Facts

At a glance

What it does

When your agent uses it

Example prompts

Workflow steps

What it can do on your machine

Tool permissions

Runs code

Network

Credentials

Context cost

Safety

SKILL.md

Reference Searcher

When to Use This Skill

What This Skill Does

Search Strategy: Three Layers

Layer 1: Official Documentation

Layer 2: Open-Source Implementation Examples (GitHub)

Layer 3: Web Search (Current Information)

Search Workflow

Result Evaluation

Output Format

Anti-Patterns

Example

Files

Compare with similar skills

Similar skills

More from ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE

Related

Questions about Reference Searcher