brainstorming

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Proactively use when brainstorming potential solutions to difficult problems.

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[Architecture Design]

When & Why to Use This Skill

The Brainstorming skill is a sophisticated framework designed to solve complex technical problems through a structured, multi-phase exploration process. It leverages autonomous subagents to validate diverse solutions using throw-away scripts, ensuring each proposal is technically sound. By focusing on comprehensive report generation and iterative feedback, it empowers users to navigate difficult architectural decisions with data-backed recommendations and clear analysis of pros and cons.

Use Cases

  • Architectural Decision Making: Explore multiple system designs and compare scalability, advantages, and disadvantages before committing to a specific technology stack.
  • Complex Problem Solving: Deploy subagents to test various hypotheses for deep-seated technical issues using isolated, throw-away scripts to find the most viable fix.
  • Algorithm Exploration: Brainstorm and validate different algorithmic approaches to improve performance or resource efficiency in data-intensive applications.
  • Feasibility Studies: Rapidly prototype and evaluate the viability of new features or integrations without impacting the main codebase, resulting in a detailed recommendation report.
namebrainstorming
descriptionProactively use when brainstorming potential solutions to difficult problems.

Standard Operating Procedure

Phase 1: Low-Handing Fruits

  1. Generate 4-5 solutions
  2. Do not assume backward compatibility, we want to explore the full space of solutions.
  3. Follow the best practices below
  4. STOP and ASK: validate solutions with user. DO NOT move to phase 2.
  5. If user selects a solution, do not start implementing. Always ask the user: should we make a plan first. Then, make a plan.

Phase 2: Advanced Solutions

  1. Only engage in phase 2 if user wants more advances solutions.
  2. Do not assume backward compatibility, we want to explore the full space of solutions.
  3. Launch 4-5 subagents each tasked with a slightly different possible solution.
  4. Subagent tasks:
    1. Each subagents shall test their proposed solution with a throw-away script demonstrating the validity of their approach.
    2. Subagents shall not stop until they have a valid solution.
    3. Subagents shall follow the best practices found below.
  5. Summarize and rank each solutions
  6. STOP and ASK: validate solutions with user. DO NOT move to phase 3.
  7. If user selects a solution, do not start implementing. Always ask the user: should we make a plan first. Then, make a plan.

Phase 3: Randomized Search Over Solution Space

  1. Only engage in phase 3 if user wants more solutions.
  2. Do not assume backward compatibility, we want to explore the full space of solutions.
  3. Launch 4-5 subagents each tasked with the exact same ask/prompt.
  4. Subagent tasks:
    1. Each subagents shall test their proposed solution with a throw-away script demonstrating the validity of their approach.
    2. Subagents shall not stop until they have a valid solution.
    3. Subagents shall follow the best practices found below.
  5. Summarize and rank each solutions
  6. STOP and ASK: validate solutions with user. DO NOT move to phase 3.
  7. If user selects a solution, do not start implementing. Always ask the user: should we make a plan first. Then, make a plan.

Best Practices

  1. Implementing a solution is not the goal, rather writing a report is.

  2. Use the report-writing skill.

  3. When evolving a solution, amend the existing report instead of writing a new one.

  4. Complex solutions should be validated with throw-away scripts.

  5. Throw-away scripts shall be written to subdirectory ,scratch. The comma prefix is not a typo.

  6. We do not care about implementation complexity.

  7. We do not care about level-of-effort.

  8. Reports shall have the following structure:

     # Title

 **Date**:
 **Repository**:

 ## Problem/Goal Statement

 ### Constraints
 
 ## Solutions

 ### Solution 1

 Describe the solution works with code examples. Provide examples of how it
 would be used in practices.

 **Advantages**:
 - First advantage
 - Second advantage

 **Disadvantages**:
 - First disadvantage
 - Second disadvantage


 ### Solution 2


 ## Recommendation

 Provide a recommendation with a short explanation of why. We do not care
 about recommendation matrices.