PR Design Doc
OpenHands/OpenHands
For a non-trivial pull request, write a self-contained HTML design doc under the temporary .pr/ directory and link a visibility-appropriate preview in the PR description, so maintainers grasp the…
Explores the problem and the range of possible approaches before any code is written — clarifying what is actually being asked, surfacing options with their tradeoffs, and converging on one.
Install Solution Exploration
$ npx skills add cbrock84/headcount --skill solution-exploration -a claude-codeProject install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.
$ gh skill install cbrock84/headcount solution-exploration --agent claude-codeProject scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/cbrock84/headcount.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/plugins/technology/skills/solution-exploration .claude/skills/solution-exploration && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.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/
Install the "solution-exploration" agent skill from https://github.com/cbrock84/headcount/tree/main/plugins/technology/skills/solution-exploration into .claude/skills/solution-exploration/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "solution-exploration", 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 install https://github.com/cbrock84/headcount/tree/main/plugins/technology/skills/solution-explorationType 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.
$ npx skills add cbrock84/headcount --skill solution-exploration -a codexProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.codex/skills/.
$ gh skill install cbrock84/headcount solution-exploration --agent codexProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/cbrock84/headcount.git skills-src && mkdir -p .agents/skills && cp -r skills-src/plugins/technology/skills/solution-exploration .agents/skills/solution-exploration && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.agents/skills/ instead of .agents/skills for a personal install.
Codex skills documentation · loads skills from .agents/skills/
Install the "solution-exploration" agent skill from https://github.com/cbrock84/headcount/tree/main/plugins/technology/skills/solution-exploration into .agents/skills/solution-exploration/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "solution-exploration", 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.
$ npx skills add cbrock84/headcount --skill solution-exploration -a cursorProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.cursor/skills/.
$ gh skill install cbrock84/headcount solution-exploration --agent cursorProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/cbrock84/headcount.git skills-src && mkdir -p .cursor/skills && cp -r skills-src/plugins/technology/skills/solution-exploration .cursor/skills/solution-exploration && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.cursor/skills/ instead of .cursor/skills for a personal install.
Cursor skills documentation · loads skills from .cursor/skills/, .agents/skills/, .claude/skills/, .codex/skills/
Install the "solution-exploration" agent skill from https://github.com/cbrock84/headcount/tree/main/plugins/technology/skills/solution-exploration into .cursor/skills/solution-exploration/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "solution-exploration", 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 https://github.com/cbrock84/headcount.git --path plugins/technology/skills/solution-exploration--scope user (default) or --scope workspace; --path is the subfolder of the repo that holds the skill; --consent skips the security confirmation prompt.
$ npx skills add cbrock84/headcount --skill solution-exploration -a gemini-cliProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.gemini/skills/.
$ gh skill install cbrock84/headcount solution-exploration --agent gemini-cliProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/cbrock84/headcount.git skills-src && mkdir -p .gemini/skills && cp -r skills-src/plugins/technology/skills/solution-exploration .gemini/skills/solution-exploration && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.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/
Install the "solution-exploration" agent skill from https://github.com/cbrock84/headcount/tree/main/plugins/technology/skills/solution-exploration into .gemini/skills/solution-exploration/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "solution-exploration", 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.
$ gh skill install cbrock84/headcount solution-explorationInstalls 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).
$ npx skills add cbrock84/headcount --skill solution-exploration -a github-copilotProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.copilot/skills/.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/cbrock84/headcount.git skills-src && mkdir -p .github/skills && cp -r skills-src/plugins/technology/skills/solution-exploration .github/skills/solution-exploration && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.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/
Install the "solution-exploration" agent skill from https://github.com/cbrock84/headcount/tree/main/plugins/technology/skills/solution-exploration into .github/skills/solution-exploration/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "solution-exploration", 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.
$ npx skills add cbrock84/headcount --skill solution-exploration -a opencodeOpenCode documents no install command of its own. Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.config/opencode/skills/.
$ gh skill install cbrock84/headcount solution-exploration --agent opencodeProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/cbrock84/headcount.git skills-src && mkdir -p .opencode/skills && cp -r skills-src/plugins/technology/skills/solution-exploration .opencode/skills/solution-exploration && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.config/opencode/skills/ instead of .opencode/skills for a personal install.
OpenCode skills documentation · loads skills from .opencode/skills/, .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/
Install the "solution-exploration" agent skill from https://github.com/cbrock84/headcount/tree/main/plugins/technology/skills/solution-exploration into .opencode/skills/solution-exploration/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "solution-exploration", 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
solution-exploration- GitHub stars
- 2k
- Token cost
- ~478 tokens
- SKILL.md length
- 236 words
- Files
- 1
- Skills in repo
- 175
- Repo updated
- First seen
- Licence
- MIT
At a glance
Explores the problem and the range of possible approaches before any code is written — clarifying what is actually being asked, surfacing options with their tradeoffs, and converging on one.
- Tasks that involve Architecture decision records
- SKILL.md covers Establish what is actually…, Generate genuinely different…, Converge and Never
- Instructions only: no scripts, shell commands, URLs or credentials in SKILL.md
What it does
Solution Exploration is an agent skill from cbrock84/headcount. Explores the problem and the range of possible approaches before any code is written — clarifying what is actually being asked, surfacing options with their tradeoffs, and converging on one. Use this at the start of any feature, component, or behavior change, when a request is ambiguous, when the first idea is the only idea on the table, or when a design decision needs pressure-testing before commitment.
Its SKILL.md is about 480 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 Development, covering Architecture decision records. The repository describes itself as: An agent organization structured as a company — 15+ departments, 125+ skills, each independently installable, citing the standards and regulators that settle the question. Runs… The licence is MIT.
When your agent uses it
- Tasks that involve Architecture decision records
Example prompts
- “Use the solution-exploration skill to explore the problem and the range of possible approaches before any code is written — clarifying what is…”
- “/solution-exploration”
What it can do on your machine
Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 98d1c17. 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.
From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.
Network
No URLs in SKILL.md.
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
Solution Exploration loads about 478 tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 107 tokens; SKILL.md has 236 words of instructions outside code blocks.
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 cbrock84/headcount at commit 98d1c17, republished under its MIT licence (© cbrock84). 236 words, ~478 tokens.
Download SKILL.mdSave it as
.claude/skills/solution-exploration/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder).- name
- solution-exploration
- description
- Explores the problem and the range of possible approaches before any code is written — clarifying what is actually being asked, surfacing options with their tradeoffs, and converging on one. Use this at the start of any feature, component, or behavior change, when a request is ambiguous, when the first idea is the only idea on the table, or when a design decision needs pressure-testing before commitment.
Solution exploration
The most expensive bugs are decisions, not defects. This runs before implementation, not instead of it.
Establish what is actually wanted
The stated request is a proposed solution wearing the clothes of a requirement. Get underneath it:
- What outcome does the person want? What breaks today without it?
- Who else touches this, and what do they assume about it now?
- What is explicitly not being asked for?
- How will we know it worked — the observable difference.
If the answers conflict, stop and resolve that first. Building the average of two requirements satisfies neither.
Generate genuinely different options
Two variations of the same idea are one option. Force real range:
- The smallest thing that could work.
- The version that assumes this doubles in scope next quarter.
- The version that requires no new moving parts.
- Buy, borrow, or do nothing.
For each: what it costs, what it forecloses, and what has to be true for it to be right.
Converge
Recommend one and say why the others lost. A comparison that ends without a recommendation has moved the work, not done it.
Name the assumption the recommendation rests on most heavily — that is where the plan will break if it breaks.
Never
- Present options you would not accept as padding around the one you want.
- Skip this because the task "is simple." Simple tasks take five minutes here.
- Let a preference stand in for a reason.
© cbrock84, MIT. Rendered from Markdown: HTML in the file is shown as text, images as links, and headings moved down two levels. Raw file
Files
Just SKILL.md in plugins/technology/skills/solution-exploration of cbrock84/headcount.
Open the folder on GitHubat commit 98d1c17
Compare with similar skills
Solution Exploration 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.
| Skill | Stars | Used in | Tokens | Auto-check | Licence | Repo updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solution Exploration this skillcbrock84/headcount | 2k | — | ~478 | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| PR Design DocOpenHands/OpenHands | 90k | — | ~2.4k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Cto AdvisorIbrahim-3d/orchestrator-supaconductor | 380 | 4 repos | ~2.4k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Improve Codebase Architectureywwynm/EverythingDone | 144 | 15 repos | ~1.3k | Automated safety check: Pass | GPL-3.0 | |
| Domain Modelingbrim-borium/spotify_sdk | 166 | 5 repos | ~806 | Automated safety check: Pass | Apache-2.0 | |
| Design Doc MermaidSpillwaveSolutions/design-doc-mermaid | 175 | 1 repos | ~5.6k | Automated safety check: Pass | None |
Similar skills
Cto Advisor
Ibrahim-3d/orchestrator-supaconductor
Technical leadership guidance for engineering teams, architecture decisions, and technology strategy.
Improve Codebase Architecture
ywwynm/EverythingDone
Find deepening opportunities in a codebase, informed by the domain language in CONTEXT.md and the decisions in docs/adr/.
Domain Modeling
brim-borium/spotify_sdk
Build and sharpen a project's domain model. An agent skill from brim-borium/spotify_sdk.
Design Doc Mermaid
SpillwaveSolutions/design-doc-mermaid
Create Mermaid diagrams (flowchart, sequence, class, ER, state, C4, architecture) from text or source code.
Learning Opportunities
DrCatHicks/learning-opportunities
Facilitates deliberate skill development during AI-assisted coding.
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Related
Categories
Questions about Solution Exploration
What does Solution Exploration do?
Explores the problem and the range of possible approaches before any code is written — clarifying what is actually being asked, surfacing options with their tradeoffs, and converging on one. Solution Exploration is an agent skill from cbrock84/headcount. Explores the problem and the range of possible approaches before any code is written — clarifying what is actually being asked, surfacing options with their tradeoffs, and converging on one.
When should I use Solution Exploration?
Solution Exploration fits situations like: tasks that involve Architecture decision records.
How do I install Solution Exploration in Claude Code?
Run `npx skills add cbrock84/headcount --skill solution-exploration -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (plugins/technology/skills/solution-exploration in cbrock84/headcount) into .claude/skills/solution-exploration in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.
How do I install Solution Exploration in Codex?
Run `npx skills add cbrock84/headcount --skill solution-exploration -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (plugins/technology/skills/solution-exploration in cbrock84/headcount) into .agents/skills/solution-exploration in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.
Can I use Solution Exploration 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 cbrock84/headcount --skill solution-exploration -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/solution-exploration, .gemini/skills/solution-exploration, .github/skills/solution-exploration and .opencode/skills/solution-exploration in your project.
What does Solution Exploration need to run?
SKILL.md names no scripts, command-line tools or credentials: Solution Exploration is instructions for the agent only.
Does Solution Exploration access the network?
SKILL.md contains no URLs. Any network use would come from the scripts or tools the agent runs. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.
Is Solution Exploration 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 Solution Exploration use?
Solution Exploration is published under the MIT licence (the repository's licence). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.
How many tokens does Solution Exploration use?
About 478 tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 1.9k 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 Solution Exploration?
Skills that share tags, products or a category with Solution Exploration: PR Design Doc (OpenHands/OpenHands, 90k stars), Cto Advisor (Ibrahim-3d/orchestrator-supaconductor, 380 stars), Improve Codebase Architecture (ywwynm/EverythingDone, 144 stars) and Domain Modeling (brim-borium/spotify_sdk, 166 stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.
Who maintains Solution Exploration?
cbrock84 (a GitHub user) maintains it in cbrock84/headcount, which has 2,007 GitHub stars. The repository holds 175 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on September 17, 2026.
Source: cbrock84/headcount on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.