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Agent skill

Build Gplates

by GPlates in GPlates/GPlates

Configure, build and test the GPlates desktop application. An agent skill from GPlates/GPlates.

Custom licenceAuto-check passedTesting & QA

Install Build Gplates

skills CLI
$ npx skills add GPlates/GPlates --skill build-gplates -a claude-code

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

GitHub CLI
$ gh skill install GPlates/GPlates build-gplates --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/GPlates/GPlates.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/.claude/skills/build-gplates .claude/skills/build-gplates && 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/

Facts

Skill name
build-gplates
GitHub stars
154
Token cost
~750 tokens
SKILL.md length
356 words
Files
1
Skills in repo
6
Repo updated
First seen
Licence
Custom licence

At a glance

Configure, build and test the GPlates desktop application. An agent skill from GPlates/GPlates.

  • Works in 5 steps: Check the environment → Configure → Build → …
  • Asked to build GPlates
  • SKILL.md covers 1. Check the environment, 2. Configure, 3. Build and 4. Test, plus 1 more section
  • Calls cmake and conda

What it does

Build Gplates is an agent skill from GPlates/GPlates. Configure, build and test the GPlates desktop application. Use when asked to build GPlates, rebuild after C++ changes, or run the GPlates unit tests (gplates-unit-test).

Its SKILL.md is about 750 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 Testing & QA, covering Unit testing. It works with C++. The repository describes itself as: GPlates is a program for visualising and manipulating plate tectonic reconstructions. PyGPlates is a Python package containing the core plate reconstruction functionality in…

When your agent uses it

  • Asked to build GPlates
  • Rebuild after C++ changes
  • Run the GPlates unit tests (gplates-unit-test)

Example prompts

  • “/build-gplates”

Workflow steps

5 steps, taken from the step headings in SKILL.md.

  1. Check the environment
  2. Configure
  3. Build
  4. Test
  5. Report

What it can do on your machine

Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit d930b40. 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

    Shell commands in SKILL.md call:

    • cmake
    • conda

    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

Build Gplates loads about 750 tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 46 tokens; SKILL.md has 356 words of instructions outside code blocks.

Always · name and description, kept in context so the agent knows when to use it
~46
When it runs · the whole SKILL.md, loaded when a task matches
~750

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

Its licence (Custom licence) doesn't allow us to republish the file, so here is its outline and opening line. It has 356 words (~750 tokens).

“Build directory is build-gplates/ unless the user names another one. This builds the Qt desktop application, not the pyGPlates module — use /build-pygplates for that.”

— opening of SKILL.md by GPlates, Custom licence
name
build-gplates

Read the full SKILL.md on GitHub

Files

Just SKILL.md in .claude/skills/build-gplates of GPlates/GPlates.

Open the folder on GitHubat commit d930b40

Compare with similar skills

Build Gplates 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.

Build Gplates compared with similar skills
SkillStarsUsed inTokensAuto-checkLicenceRepo updated
Build Gplates this skillGPlates/GPlates154—~750Automated safety check: PassCustom licence
OpenROAD Module Test AdderThe-OpenROAD-Project/OpenROAD3.2k—~1.8kAutomated safety check: PassBSD-3-Clause
FortranMindrally/skills271—~2.3kAutomated safety check: PassApache-2.0
Code Testing Extensionsmicrosoft/testfx1k—~936Automated safety check: PassMIT
Test Case ReducerArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE253—~2.5kAutomated safety check: PassApache-2.0
Interval Guided Regression Test UpdateArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE253—~2.7kAutomated safety check: PassApache-2.0

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More from GPlates/GPlates

  • API Docstring

    GPlates/GPlates

    Conventions for writing or reviewing pyGPlates Python API docstrings (signature-first line, type fields, overloads, math markup).

    154 GitHub stars~1k tokensUpdated yesterday
    Auto-check passed

  • Build Pygplates

    GPlates/GPlates

    Configure, build and test pyGPlates. An agent skill from GPlates/GPlates.

    154 GitHub stars~698 tokensUpdated yesterday
    Auto-check passed

  • Cpp Test

    GPlates/GPlates

    Conventions for adding or modifying C++ unit tests in GPlates (GoogleTest, src/unit-test/).

    154 GitHub stars~696 tokensUpdated yesterday
    Auto-check passed

  • Docs Build

    GPlates/GPlates

    Build the pyGPlates Python API documentation (Sphinx, docs-pygplates).

    154 GitHub stars~620 tokensUpdated yesterday
    Auto-check passed

  • Release Wheel

    GPlates/GPlates

    Walk through publishing a pyGPlates release to PyPI - version bump, release tag, and the approval gate.

    154 GitHub stars~1.8k tokensUpdated yesterday
    Auto-check passed

Works with

Categories

Questions about Build Gplates

What does Build Gplates do?

Configure, build and test the GPlates desktop application. An agent skill from GPlates/GPlates. Build Gplates is an agent skill from GPlates/GPlates. Configure, build and test the GPlates desktop application.

When should I use Build Gplates?

Build Gplates fits situations like: asked to build GPlates; rebuild after C++ changes; run the GPlates unit tests (gplates-unit-test).

How do I install Build Gplates in Claude Code?

Run `npx skills add GPlates/GPlates --skill build-gplates -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (.claude/skills/build-gplates in GPlates/GPlates) into .claude/skills/build-gplates in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.

How do I install Build Gplates in Codex?

Run `npx skills add GPlates/GPlates --skill build-gplates -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (.claude/skills/build-gplates in GPlates/GPlates) into .agents/skills/build-gplates in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.

Can I use Build Gplates 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 GPlates/GPlates --skill build-gplates -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/build-gplates, .gemini/skills/build-gplates, .github/skills/build-gplates and .opencode/skills/build-gplates in your project.

What does Build Gplates need to run?

Going by SKILL.md and its folder, Build Gplates needs the command-line tools its instructions call (cmake and conda).

Does Build Gplates 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 Build Gplates 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 Build Gplates use?

Build Gplates has a licence file (the repository's licence) that doesn't match a standard licence. Read it on GitHub before reusing the skill.

How many tokens does Build Gplates use?

About 750 tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 3k 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 Build Gplates?

Skills that share tags, products or a category with Build Gplates: OpenROAD Module Test Adder (The-OpenROAD-Project/OpenROAD, 3.2k stars), Fortran (Mindrally/skills, 271 stars), Code Testing Extensions (microsoft/testfx, 1k stars) and Test Case Reducer (ArabelaTso/Skills-4-SE, 253 stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.

Who maintains Build Gplates?

GPlates (a GitHub organization) maintains it in GPlates/GPlates, which has 154 GitHub stars. The repository holds 6 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on October 8, 2026.

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