Flow Next Capture

/flow-next:capture — agent-native conversation → spec

A discussion (or a /flow-next:prospect survivor) often holds a complete spec that never gets written down, and the next session loses it. Capture is the synthesis step: the host agent extracts the user's turns, drafts a spec against the resolved template, tags only what it paraphrased or inferred ([paraphrase] / [inferred] / [strategy:<track>]; the user's verbatim words stay untagged), writes it through flowctl, prints a compact summary, and offers the saved file in the editor (docs/read-back.md). The capture request authorizes the write; substantive choices still get short questions. No Python synthesizer, no model subprocess.

flowctl supplies thin plumbing (spec create, spec set-plan, spec set-branch, memory search) plus the chart link-spec callback after a chart-briefing capture. Capture never writes chart files or a chart's ready flag; chart never writes .flow/specs.

Clear ideas and finished chart briefings route here; capture never manufactures a chart for clear work. Unsure: /flow-next:flow --explain.

Read workflow.md for the phases and phases.md for the source tags. Branch-specific machinery lives in references/*.md, loaded only when its gate fires.

Read working-rules.md first unless you already have this run; it holds for every step of this skill.

Preamble

CRITICAL: flowctl is BUNDLED — NOT installed globally. which flowctl will fail (expected). workflow.md's Preamble defines $FLOWCTL; later blocks (there and in phases.md) use it.

Inline skill (no context: fork) — plain-text numbered prompt must stay reachable across phases; subagents cannot call plain-text numbered prompts.

Mode Detection

Parse $ARGUMENTS for the literal tokens mode:autofix and from:flow and the flags --rewrite <spec-id>, --from-compacted-ok, --yes, --override-strategy, --no-plan. Strip recognized tokens; the remainder is ignored (the conversation is the input).

RAW_ARGS="$ARGUMENTS"
MODE="interactive"
REWRITE_TARGET=""
FROM_COMPACTED_OK=0
COMMIT_YES=0
OVERRIDE_STRATEGY=0

if [[ "$RAW_ARGS" == *"mode:autofix"* ]]; then
  MODE="autofix"
  RAW_ARGS="${RAW_ARGS//mode:autofix/}"
fi

if [[ "$RAW_ARGS" =~ --rewrite[[:space:]]+([^[:space:]]+) ]]; then
  REWRITE_TARGET="${BASH_REMATCH[1]}"
  RAW_ARGS="${RAW_ARGS//--rewrite ${REWRITE_TARGET}/}"
fi

if [[ "$RAW_ARGS" == *"--from-compacted-ok"* ]]; then
  FROM_COMPACTED_OK=1
  RAW_ARGS="${RAW_ARGS//--from-compacted-ok/}"
fi

# --yes (autofix write gate), --override-strategy, --no-plan and from:flow
# authorize durable writes, so they are EXACT-token matches: lookalikes
# ("--yesterday", "--no-planning", "from:flowchart") stay in the remainder.
NO_PLAN_OPT=0
FROM_FLOW=0
CLEANED_ARGS=""
for TOK in $RAW_ARGS; do
  if [ "$TOK" = "--yes" ]; then
    COMMIT_YES=1
  elif [ "$TOK" = "--override-strategy" ]; then
    OVERRIDE_STRATEGY=1
  elif [ "$TOK" = "--no-plan" ]; then
    NO_PLAN_OPT=1
  elif [ "$TOK" = "from:flow" ]; then
    FROM_FLOW=1
  else
    CLEANED_ARGS="$CLEANED_ARGS $TOK"
  fi
done
RAW_ARGS="$CLEANED_ARGS"

if [ "$MODE" = "autofix" ]; then
  echo "GATE ACTIVE — STOP. Read references/autofix-mode.md before continuing."
fi   # default branch: bare no-op — NO link, NO read path

When the sentinel prints, read references/autofix-mode.md before Phase 0; it owns the per-phase autofix rules. On the interactive path, read nothing.

Questions (interactive only)

Interactive capture follows the working rules' attended contract, plus:

Ask the user via plain text. Render the options below as a numbered list 1. … N., followed by a final option N+1. Other — type your own answer. Print the question, then the numbered list, then stop and wait for the user's next message before continuing. Parse the reply as: a bare number 1–N+1 → that option; the literal text of an option label → that option; free text after Other → custom answer.

• Use plain-text numbered prompt (load it with ToolSearch select:plain-text numbered prompt if needed); plain-text numbered options only when the tool is unreachable. Never skip a question silently.
• The body leads with the recommendation, a one-sentence reason, and a confidence tier ([high] / [judgment-call] / [your-call]; before asking, read references/confidence-tiers.md). Option labels stay neutral and state their consequence.
• Plain language: one sentence of stakes, everyday words, a short gloss for any needed term (R-ID, [inferred]).
• Never ask for facts the conversation already gave. Phase 3 asks only its must-ask cases; other [inferred] content surfaces in the summary instead.