Academic Paper Strategist
AAASS554/codex-academic-paper-skills
A skill your agent uses when the user needs to plan, de-risk, or ground a software engineering / computer science undergraduate thesis from a real codebase before final writing.
Create and revise a structured topic outline from an evolving brief, audience, angle, thesis, sections, questions, and sources.
Install Topic Outline
$ npx skills add xiaotianfotos/homerail --skill topic-outline -a claude-codeProject install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.
$ gh skill install xiaotianfotos/homerail topic-outline --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/xiaotianfotos/homerail.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/plugins/builtin/topic-outline/skills/topic-outline .claude/skills/topic-outline && 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 "topic-outline" agent skill from https://github.com/xiaotianfotos/homerail/tree/main/plugins/builtin/topic-outline/skills/topic-outline into .claude/skills/topic-outline/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "topic-outline", 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/xiaotianfotos/homerail/tree/main/plugins/builtin/topic-outline/skills/topic-outlineType 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 xiaotianfotos/homerail --skill topic-outline -a codexProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.codex/skills/.
$ gh skill install xiaotianfotos/homerail topic-outline --agent codexProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/xiaotianfotos/homerail.git skills-src && mkdir -p .agents/skills && cp -r skills-src/plugins/builtin/topic-outline/skills/topic-outline .agents/skills/topic-outline && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.agents/skills/ instead of .agents/skills for a personal install.
Codex skills documentation · loads skills from .agents/skills/
Install the "topic-outline" agent skill from https://github.com/xiaotianfotos/homerail/tree/main/plugins/builtin/topic-outline/skills/topic-outline into .agents/skills/topic-outline/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "topic-outline", 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 xiaotianfotos/homerail --skill topic-outline -a cursorProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.cursor/skills/.
$ gh skill install xiaotianfotos/homerail topic-outline --agent cursorProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/xiaotianfotos/homerail.git skills-src && mkdir -p .cursor/skills && cp -r skills-src/plugins/builtin/topic-outline/skills/topic-outline .cursor/skills/topic-outline && 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 "topic-outline" agent skill from https://github.com/xiaotianfotos/homerail/tree/main/plugins/builtin/topic-outline/skills/topic-outline into .cursor/skills/topic-outline/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "topic-outline", 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/xiaotianfotos/homerail.git --path plugins/builtin/topic-outline/skills/topic-outline--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 xiaotianfotos/homerail --skill topic-outline -a gemini-cliProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.gemini/skills/.
$ gh skill install xiaotianfotos/homerail topic-outline --agent gemini-cliProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/xiaotianfotos/homerail.git skills-src && mkdir -p .gemini/skills && cp -r skills-src/plugins/builtin/topic-outline/skills/topic-outline .gemini/skills/topic-outline && 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 "topic-outline" agent skill from https://github.com/xiaotianfotos/homerail/tree/main/plugins/builtin/topic-outline/skills/topic-outline into .gemini/skills/topic-outline/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "topic-outline", 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 xiaotianfotos/homerail topic-outlineInstalls 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 xiaotianfotos/homerail --skill topic-outline -a github-copilotProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.copilot/skills/.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/xiaotianfotos/homerail.git skills-src && mkdir -p .github/skills && cp -r skills-src/plugins/builtin/topic-outline/skills/topic-outline .github/skills/topic-outline && 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 "topic-outline" agent skill from https://github.com/xiaotianfotos/homerail/tree/main/plugins/builtin/topic-outline/skills/topic-outline into .github/skills/topic-outline/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "topic-outline", 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 xiaotianfotos/homerail --skill topic-outline -a opencodeOpenCode documents no install command of its own. Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.config/opencode/skills/.
$ gh skill install xiaotianfotos/homerail topic-outline --agent opencodeProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/xiaotianfotos/homerail.git skills-src && mkdir -p .opencode/skills && cp -r skills-src/plugins/builtin/topic-outline/skills/topic-outline .opencode/skills/topic-outline && 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 "topic-outline" agent skill from https://github.com/xiaotianfotos/homerail/tree/main/plugins/builtin/topic-outline/skills/topic-outline into .opencode/skills/topic-outline/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "topic-outline", 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
topic-outline- GitHub stars
- 994
- Token cost
- ~392 tokens
- SKILL.md length
- 208 words
- Files
- 1
- Skills in repo
- 11
- Repo updated
- First seen
- Licence
- MIT
At a glance
Create and revise a structured topic outline from an evolving brief, audience, angle, thesis, sections, questions, and sources.
- Tasks that involve Essays and academic help
- Instructions only: no scripts, shell commands, URLs or credentials in SKILL.md
What it does
Topic Outline is an agent skill from xiaotianfotos/homerail. Create and revise a structured topic outline from an evolving brief, audience, angle, thesis, sections, questions, and sources.
Its SKILL.md is about 390 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 Education, covering Essays and academic help. The repository describes itself as: Voice-first local agent orchestration runtime for auditable DAG workflows. The licence is MIT.
When your agent uses it
- Tasks that involve Essays and academic help
Example prompts
- “/topic-outline”
What it can do on your machine
Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 916e343. 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
Topic Outline loads about 392 tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 35 tokens; SKILL.md has 208 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 xiaotianfotos/homerail at commit 916e343, republished under its MIT licence (© xiaotianfotos). 208 words, ~392 tokens.
Download SKILL.mdSave it as
.claude/skills/topic-outline/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder).- name
- topic-outline
- description
- Create and revise a structured topic outline from an evolving brief, audience, angle, thesis, sections, questions, and sources.
Topic Outline
Use this Skill when the user asks to plan, structure, or revise a content topic. Do not use it for a generic task checklist or for an outline the user did not request.
Call the current Tool catalog entry for com.homerail.topic-outline:upsert_topic_outline with the complete current outline. Its harness-safe wire name is supplied by the current turn and must not be guessed. Reuse one stable plugin-owned id such as com.homerail.topic-outline:current across turns so a revision replaces the same semantic node without colliding with Core or another plugin. A partial outline is valid: record what is known, preserve useful prior fields, and put only unresolved decisions in questions.
Keep the shape concise:
titlenames the topic, not the UI component.brief,audience,angle, andthesiscapture the current editorial direction.outlinecontains ordered sections with short points and truthful status.sourcesincludes only real HTTP(S) references supplied or found through an authorized tool.next_actionstates the next useful editorial step.confidencereflects evidence, not presentation polish.
Use the matching topic-outline Tool only when it is listed for the current turn. Do not substitute a legacy dynamic widget. If the requested outline is not placed on the canvas, tell the user only that visible result and offer to retry.
© xiaotianfotos, 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/builtin/topic-outline/skills/topic-outline of xiaotianfotos/homerail.
Open the folder on GitHubat commit 916e343
Compare with similar skills
Topic Outline 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Topic Outline this skillxiaotianfotos/homerail | 994 | — | ~392 | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Academic Paper StrategistAAASS554/codex-academic-paper-skills | 539 | 1 repos | ~2.7k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Modeling Paper Rubric and Model Selectoryushui2022/MathModel-Skill | 454 | 1 repos | ~1.8k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Humanities Thesisganzhi-black/humanities-thesis-skill | 637 | — | ~1.7k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Skill Thesis Writeryanlin-cheng/skill-thesis-writer | 209 | — | ~1.6k | Automated safety check: Pass | Custom licence | |
| Thesis CreatorStars-OC/thesis-creator | 230 | — | ~2.8k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT |
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Related
Categories
Questions about Topic Outline
What does Topic Outline do?
Create and revise a structured topic outline from an evolving brief, audience, angle, thesis, sections, questions, and sources. Topic Outline is an agent skill from xiaotianfotos/homerail. Create and revise a structured topic outline from an evolving brief, audience, angle, thesis, sections, questions, and sources.
When should I use Topic Outline?
Topic Outline fits situations like: tasks that involve Essays and academic help.
How do I install Topic Outline in Claude Code?
Run `npx skills add xiaotianfotos/homerail --skill topic-outline -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (plugins/builtin/topic-outline/skills/topic-outline in xiaotianfotos/homerail) into .claude/skills/topic-outline in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.
How do I install Topic Outline in Codex?
Run `npx skills add xiaotianfotos/homerail --skill topic-outline -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (plugins/builtin/topic-outline/skills/topic-outline in xiaotianfotos/homerail) into .agents/skills/topic-outline in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.
Can I use Topic Outline 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 xiaotianfotos/homerail --skill topic-outline -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/topic-outline, .gemini/skills/topic-outline, .github/skills/topic-outline and .opencode/skills/topic-outline in your project.
What does Topic Outline need to run?
SKILL.md names no scripts, command-line tools or credentials: Topic Outline is instructions for the agent only.
Does Topic Outline 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 Topic Outline 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 Topic Outline use?
Topic Outline 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 Topic Outline use?
About 392 tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 1.6k 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 Topic Outline?
Skills that share tags, products or a category with Topic Outline: Academic Paper Strategist (AAASS554/codex-academic-paper-skills, 539 stars), Modeling Paper Rubric and Model Selector (yushui2022/MathModel-Skill, 454 stars), Humanities Thesis (ganzhi-black/humanities-thesis-skill, 637 stars) and Skill Thesis Writer (yanlin-cheng/skill-thesis-writer, 209 stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.
Who maintains Topic Outline?
xiaotianfotos (a GitHub user) maintains it in xiaotianfotos/homerail, which has 994 GitHub stars. The repository holds 11 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on September 25, 2026.
Source: xiaotianfotos/homerail on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.