Writing Skills
farm-fe/farm
A skill your agent uses when creating new skills, editing existing skills, or verifying skills work before deployment
A skill your agent uses when the user wants to author, design, scope, or refine an Agent Skill (a SKILL.md file).
Install Agent Skill Author
$ npx skills add matlab/agent-skills-playground --skill agent-skill-author -a claude-codeProject install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.
$ gh skill install matlab/agent-skills-playground agent-skill-author --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/matlab/agent-skills-playground.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/demos/engineering-an-agent-skill/skills/agent-skill-author .claude/skills/agent-skill-author && 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 "agent-skill-author" agent skill from https://github.com/matlab/agent-skills-playground/tree/main/demos/engineering-an-agent-skill/skills/agent-skill-author into .claude/skills/agent-skill-author/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "agent-skill-author", 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/matlab/agent-skills-playground/tree/main/demos/engineering-an-agent-skill/skills/agent-skill-authorType 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 matlab/agent-skills-playground --skill agent-skill-author -a codexProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.codex/skills/.
$ gh skill install matlab/agent-skills-playground agent-skill-author --agent codexProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/matlab/agent-skills-playground.git skills-src && mkdir -p .agents/skills && cp -r skills-src/demos/engineering-an-agent-skill/skills/agent-skill-author .agents/skills/agent-skill-author && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.agents/skills/ instead of .agents/skills for a personal install.
Codex skills documentation · loads skills from .agents/skills/
Install the "agent-skill-author" agent skill from https://github.com/matlab/agent-skills-playground/tree/main/demos/engineering-an-agent-skill/skills/agent-skill-author into .agents/skills/agent-skill-author/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "agent-skill-author", 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 matlab/agent-skills-playground --skill agent-skill-author -a cursorProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.cursor/skills/.
$ gh skill install matlab/agent-skills-playground agent-skill-author --agent cursorProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/matlab/agent-skills-playground.git skills-src && mkdir -p .cursor/skills && cp -r skills-src/demos/engineering-an-agent-skill/skills/agent-skill-author .cursor/skills/agent-skill-author && 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 "agent-skill-author" agent skill from https://github.com/matlab/agent-skills-playground/tree/main/demos/engineering-an-agent-skill/skills/agent-skill-author into .cursor/skills/agent-skill-author/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "agent-skill-author", 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/matlab/agent-skills-playground.git --path demos/engineering-an-agent-skill/skills/agent-skill-author--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 matlab/agent-skills-playground --skill agent-skill-author -a gemini-cliProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.gemini/skills/.
$ gh skill install matlab/agent-skills-playground agent-skill-author --agent gemini-cliProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/matlab/agent-skills-playground.git skills-src && mkdir -p .gemini/skills && cp -r skills-src/demos/engineering-an-agent-skill/skills/agent-skill-author .gemini/skills/agent-skill-author && 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 "agent-skill-author" agent skill from https://github.com/matlab/agent-skills-playground/tree/main/demos/engineering-an-agent-skill/skills/agent-skill-author into .gemini/skills/agent-skill-author/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "agent-skill-author", 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 matlab/agent-skills-playground agent-skill-authorInstalls 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 matlab/agent-skills-playground --skill agent-skill-author -a github-copilotProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.copilot/skills/.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/matlab/agent-skills-playground.git skills-src && mkdir -p .github/skills && cp -r skills-src/demos/engineering-an-agent-skill/skills/agent-skill-author .github/skills/agent-skill-author && 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 "agent-skill-author" agent skill from https://github.com/matlab/agent-skills-playground/tree/main/demos/engineering-an-agent-skill/skills/agent-skill-author into .github/skills/agent-skill-author/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "agent-skill-author", 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 matlab/agent-skills-playground --skill agent-skill-author -a opencodeOpenCode documents no install command of its own. Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.config/opencode/skills/.
$ gh skill install matlab/agent-skills-playground agent-skill-author --agent opencodeProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/matlab/agent-skills-playground.git skills-src && mkdir -p .opencode/skills && cp -r skills-src/demos/engineering-an-agent-skill/skills/agent-skill-author .opencode/skills/agent-skill-author && 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 "agent-skill-author" agent skill from https://github.com/matlab/agent-skills-playground/tree/main/demos/engineering-an-agent-skill/skills/agent-skill-author into .opencode/skills/agent-skill-author/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "agent-skill-author", 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
agent-skill-author- GitHub stars
- 181
- Token cost
- ~1.7k tokens
- SKILL.md length
- 901 words
- Files
- 2
- Skills in repo
- 29
- Repo updated
- First seen
- Licence
- Custom licence
At a glance
A skill your agent uses when the user wants to author, design, scope, or refine an Agent Skill (a SKILL.md file).
- Works in 5 steps: Probe for real failures → Identify the real knowledge gaps → Design the skill → …
- The user wants to author
- SKILL.md covers Stage 1: Probe for real failures, Stage 2: Identify the real…, Stage 3: Design the skill and Stage 4: Iterate against…, plus 3 more sections
- Instructions only: no scripts, shell commands, URLs or credentials in SKILL.md
What it does
Agent Skill Author is an agent skill from matlab/agent-skills-playground. Use this skill when the user wants to author, design, scope, or refine an Agent Skill (a SKILL.md file). Trigger phrases include "build a new skill", "design an agent skill", "scope a SKILL.md", "how should I structure this skill", "write a skill for X", "my skill isn't working well", or any request to improve an existing SKILL.md. Walks the user through an empirical, test-first process — probe the agent for real failures, design only for genuine knowledge gaps, iterate against runnable examples, and verify…
Its SKILL.md is about 1.7k tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. The skill folder holds 2 other files (for example `templates/SKILL-template.md`).
It sits in Agent Workflows, covering Skill authoring and Test-driven development. The repository describes itself as: A sandbox for prototyping and demonstrating Agent Skills for MATLAB and Simulink work.
When your agent uses it
- The user wants to author
- Refine an Agent Skill (a SKILL.md file)
- Phrases include build a new skill
- Design an agent skill
Example prompts
- “build a new skill”
- “design an agent skill”
- “scope a SKILL.md”
- “/agent-skill-author”
Requirements
- Python 3
Workflow steps
5 steps, taken from the step headings in SKILL.md.
- Probe for real failures
- Identify the real knowledge gaps
- Design the skill
- Iterate against runnable examples
- Maintain
What it can do on your machine
Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 7b14a77. 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
Agent Skill Author loads about 1.7k tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 137 tokens; SKILL.md has 901 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
Its licence (Custom licence) doesn't allow us to republish the file, so here is its outline and opening line. It has 901 words (~1,742 tokens).
“You are helping a user author or improve an Agent Skill. Skills are markdown files an agent loads to handle domain-specific work it would otherwise get wrong. A skill is worth writing only when the failure is consistent, subtle, and…”
- name
- agent-skill-author
- license
- https://www.mathworks.com/content/dam/mathworks/license/pmrl/license.md
- metadata.author
- MathWorks
- metadata.version
- 1.0
Files
SKILL.md and 1 other file in demos/engineering-an-agent-skill/skills/agent-skill-author of matlab/agent-skills-playground.
- SKILL.md
- templates/SKILL-template.md
Open the folder on GitHubat commit 7b14a77
Compare with similar skills
Agent Skill Author 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agent Skill Author this skillmatlab/agent-skills-playground | 181 | — | ~1.7k | Automated safety check: Pass | Custom licence | |
| Writing Skillsfarm-fe/farm | 5.6k | 37 repos | ~5.6k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Writing Skillsed3dai/ed3d-plugins | 250 | 1 repos | ~1.3k | Automated safety check: Pass | None | |
| Superpowers Writing Skillschristopherarter/superpowers-reasonix | 102 | — | ~2.8k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Writing SkillsTechDufus/oh-my-claude | 174 | — | ~1.3k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Writing SkillsjnMetaCode/superpowers-zh | 8.3k | — | ~3.2k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT |
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Related
Categories
Questions about Agent Skill Author
What does Agent Skill Author do?
A skill your agent uses when the user wants to author, design, scope, or refine an Agent Skill (a SKILL.md file). Agent Skill Author is an agent skill from matlab/agent-skills-playground.md file).
When should I use Agent Skill Author?
Agent Skill Author fits situations like: the user wants to author; refine an Agent Skill (a SKILL.md file); phrases include build a new skill; design an agent skill.
How do I install Agent Skill Author in Claude Code?
Run `npx skills add matlab/agent-skills-playground --skill agent-skill-author -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (demos/engineering-an-agent-skill/skills/agent-skill-author in matlab/agent-skills-playground) into .claude/skills/agent-skill-author in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.
How do I install Agent Skill Author in Codex?
Run `npx skills add matlab/agent-skills-playground --skill agent-skill-author -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (demos/engineering-an-agent-skill/skills/agent-skill-author in matlab/agent-skills-playground) into .agents/skills/agent-skill-author in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.
Can I use Agent Skill Author 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 matlab/agent-skills-playground --skill agent-skill-author -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/agent-skill-author, .gemini/skills/agent-skill-author, .github/skills/agent-skill-author and .opencode/skills/agent-skill-author in your project.
What does Agent Skill Author need to run?
SKILL.md names no scripts, command-line tools or credentials: Agent Skill Author is instructions for the agent only. Our summary lists: Python 3.
Does Agent Skill Author 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 Agent Skill Author 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 Agent Skill Author use?
Agent Skill Author 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 Agent Skill Author use?
About 1.7k tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 7k 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 Agent Skill Author?
Skills that share tags, products or a category with Agent Skill Author: Writing Skills (farm-fe/farm, 5.6k stars), Writing Skills (ed3dai/ed3d-plugins, 250 stars), Superpowers Writing Skills (christopherarter/superpowers-reasonix, 102 stars) and Writing Skills (TechDufus/oh-my-claude, 174 stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.
Who maintains Agent Skill Author?
matlab (a GitHub organization) maintains it in matlab/agent-skills-playground, which has 181 GitHub stars. The repository holds 29 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on September 10, 2026.
Source: matlab/agent-skills-playground on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.