Status
Spin up a read-only project snapshot from git, GitHub issues, active plans, and ai-workspace memory when you need to catch up without running a full /catchup rebuild.
Overview
Status is an agent skill most often used in Operate (also Build, Ship) that assembles a read-only project dashboard from git, GitHub issues, plans, and ai-workspace memory.
Install
npx skills add https://github.com/camacho/ai-skills --skill statusWhat is this skill?
- Parallel data pull: last 10 commits, 15 recent branches, worktrees, and short git status
- GitHub issues via gh CLI—open list plus issues closed in the last 7 days
- Scans ai-workspace/plans for non-.done.md plans and reads each Status field
- Reports MEMORY.md line count against the 200-line limit plus scratchpad state
- Explicitly read-only—no mutations; degrades gracefully if gh is not authenticated
- Checks MEMORY.md against a 200-line limit
- Fetches up to 20 open and 10 recently closed GitHub issues
- Shows last 10 commits and up to 15 branches
Adoption & trust: 582 installs on skills.sh; 1 GitHub stars; 2/3 security scanners passed (skills.sh audits).
What problem does it solve?
You are returning to a repo after context switching and cannot quickly see branches, open issues, active plans, and memory limits in one place.
Who is it for?
Solo builders who maintain ai-workspace plans and MEMORY.md and want a fast orientation pass before choosing the next task.
Skip if: Teams that need live CI dashboards, production SLOs, or deep incident timelines—use monitoring-focused skills instead.
When should I use this skill?
User asks for a status report, project overview, what's going on, where are we, or wants to catch up on project state without full /catchup reconstruction.
What do I get? / Deliverables
You receive a structured status report you can act on immediately, without modifying the repo or running a full catchup reconstruction.
- Concise multi-section status dashboard
- Notes on skipped GitHub data if gh is unavailable
Recommended Skills
Journey fit
Spans multiple journey phases - primary shelf plus alternate fits below.
Day-to-day solo work lives in operate/iterate—knowing branches, open issues, and memory pressure is how you decide what to do next without derailing shipping. Iterate subphase covers ongoing steering of the repo; status is the lightweight dashboard before you pick the next task or plan file.
Where it fits
Before planning the afternoon, list open plans and recent commits to see which feature branch is actually live.
Pre-release, confirm no stray worktrees and scan open issues tagged for the release milestone.
Weekly check-in: MEMORY.md nearing 200 lines and scratchpad state before archiving notes.
How it compares
Use instead of ad-hoc shell one-liners when you want a consistent multi-source snapshot tied to ai-workspace conventions.
Common Questions / FAQ
Who is status for?
Indie and solo developers using git, optional GitHub Issues, and an ai-workspace folder who need a quick project pulse from their coding agent.
When should I use status?
During build or ship when you resume work and need commits, branches, and plans aligned; in operate when triaging what is stale; anytime you ask what is going on or where we are without full catchup.
Is status safe to install?
It is designed read-only, but it runs git and may call gh against your repo—review the Security Audits panel on this page and confirm gh scope before enabling network access.
SKILL.md
READMESKILL.md - Status
# Project Status Report Generate a concise project status dashboard. This is a read-only snapshot — it doesn't modify anything. ## Data Collection Gather these in parallel where possible: ### 1. Git State ```bash REPO_ROOT="$(git rev-parse --show-toplevel)" git -C "$REPO_ROOT" log --oneline -10 git -C "$REPO_ROOT" branch -a --sort=-committerdate | head -15 git -C "$REPO_ROOT" worktree list git -C "$REPO_ROOT" status --short ``` ### 2. GitHub Issues ```bash # Open issues, sorted by most recent gh issue list --state open --json number,title,labels,updatedAt --limit 20 # Recently closed (last 7 days) gh issue list --state closed --json number,title,closedAt --limit 10 | jq '[.[] | select(.closedAt > (now - 604800 | todate))]' ``` If `gh` is not authenticated, skip this section and note "GitHub CLI not authenticated — issue data unavailable." ### 3. Active Plans Check `"$(git rev-parse --show-toplevel)/ai-workspace/plans/"` for any non-`.done.md` plan files. Read their Status field. ### 4. Memory State - Read `"$(git rev-parse --show-toplevel)/ai-workspace/MEMORY.md"` — note line count vs 200-line limit - Check `"$(git rev-parse --show-toplevel)/ai-workspace/.last-reflect-ts"` — how long since last /reflect - Check `"$(git rev-parse --show-toplevel)/.branch-context.md"` — any uncommitted learnings ### 5. Scratchpad Read `"$(git rev-parse --show-toplevel)/ai-workspace/scratchpad.md"` — count `- [ ]` items awaiting elevation. ## Output Format Present as a compact dashboard. Adapt the sections based on what data is available — skip sections with no content rather than showing empty tables. ``` ## Project Status: <repo-name> ### <date> **Branch**: <current branch> | **Mode**: <autonomous/copilot> | **Last reflect**: <relative time> ### Open Issues (<count>) | # | Title | Labels | Updated | |---|-------|--------|---------| (most recent 10, sorted by updated) ### Recently Closed (<count>, last 7d) - #N title (closed <date>) ### Active Work - Branches: <list active non-main branches> - Worktrees: <list linked worktrees> - Plans in progress: <list non-.done.md plans> ### Health - MEMORY.md: <line count>/200 lines - Scratchpad: <N> items flagged for elevation - Last reflect: <timestamp or "never"> - .branch-context.md: <exists with N lines / not found> ### Suggested Next (Pick 2-3 based on what you see — e.g., stale issues, scratchpad items to elevate, overdue reflect, MEMORY.md near limit) ``` The "Suggested Next" section is the most valuable part — it turns a passive report into actionable guidance. Base suggestions on: - Issues with no recent activity - `- [ ]` scratchpad items that should become issues - MEMORY.md approaching 200 lines (needs pruning) - Long time since last /reflect - Branches with no recent commits (stale work) - Open issues that match recently completed work (may be closeable)