skills/technical-writer/SKILL.md
Expert technical documentation specialist for developer docs, API references, and runbooks. Activate on: documentation, docs, README, API reference, technical writing, user guide, runbook, ADR, changelog, release notes, tutorial, how-to guide. NOT for: marketing copy (use copywriting skills), blog posts (use content skills), code comments (handled by developers).
npx skillsauth add curiositech/windags-skills technical-writerInstall this skill globally with one command. Works with Claude Code, Cursor, and Windsurf.
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Expert technical documentation specialist focusing on developer documentation, API references, system architecture docs, runbooks, and knowledge base articles.
| Doc Type | Purpose | Key Characteristics | |----------|---------|---------------------| | Tutorials | Learning-oriented | Hands-on, step-by-step introduction | | How-to Guides | Task-oriented | Solve specific problems | | Explanations | Understanding-oriented | Background, context, concepts | | References | Information-oriented | Accurate, complete, searchable |
PRACTICAL THEORETICAL
┌──────────────────────┬──────────────────────┐
LEARNING│ TUTORIALS │ EXPLANATIONS │
│ "Learning by doing" │ "Understanding why" │
├──────────────────────┼──────────────────────┤
WORKING │ HOW-TO GUIDES │ REFERENCE │
│ "Solve problems" │ "Look up facts" │
└──────────────────────┴──────────────────────┘
Complete templates in ./references/:
| Template | Use Case |
|----------|----------|
| readme-template.md | Project README with all essential sections |
| adr-template.md | Architecture Decision Records |
| api-reference-template.md | REST API documentation |
| runbook-template.md | Operational procedures |
Symptom: Dense paragraphs, no headings or visual breaks Fix: Headings, bullet points, tables, code blocks, whitespace
Symptom: Code samples that don't compile or use deprecated APIs Fix: Test all examples in CI, version-lock dependencies, add "last verified" dates
Symptom: Tutorials assume knowledge/setup without stating it Fix: List prerequisites upfront, link to setup guides, specify versions
Symptom: Skipping "obvious" steps that aren't obvious to beginners Fix: Have newcomers test docs, include all steps, explain the "why"
Symptom: Happy path only, no troubleshooting Fix: Include common errors and solutions, link to support channels
Symptom: 404s to moved or deleted pages Fix: Link checking in CI, relative links where possible, redirects for moved content
Symptom: Different styles, code block languages, heading levels Fix: Style guide, linting (markdownlint), templates for common doc types
Symptom: Docs assume reader knows system architecture Fix: Brief context at top, link to architecture docs, explain "where this fits"
Symptom: UI screenshots from 3 versions ago Fix: Automate screenshot capture, note UI version, prefer text over images
Symptom: Docs don't match user's installed version Fix: Version selector, version badges, maintain docs per major version
Structure:
Content:
Completeness:
Run ./scripts/validate-docs.sh to check:
Static Sites: Docusaurus, MkDocs, VitePress, Astro API Docs: Swagger/Redoc, Stoplight, ReadMe.io Diagrams: Mermaid, PlantUML, Excalidraw, Diagrams.net
data-ai
license: Apache-2.0 NOT for unrelated tasks outside this domain.
development
Use when designing caching strategies (cache-aside, write-through, write-behind), implementing distributed locks, building rate limiters, leaderboards, real-time streams (XADD/consumer groups), pub/sub, or tuning eviction policies. Triggers: thundering-herd on cache miss, dogpile on key expiry, Redlock vs SET-NX-PX choice, sliding-window rate limiter, hot-key on a single cluster slot, big-key blowup, MULTI/EXEC across slots, KEYS in production. NOT for Redis Cluster operations/admin (different domain), embedded KV (SQLite, leveldb), in-process LRU caches, or Memcached.
tools
Drawing the `'use client'` boundary correctly in React Server Components apps (Next.js App Router, RSC frameworks) — leaf-pushing, slot composition, serialization rules, and environment poisoning prevention. Grounded in react.dev and Next.js 16 docs.
development
Use when designing rate limiting for an API, choosing between token bucket / sliding window / leaky bucket / fixed window, implementing it in Redis, deciding edge (Cloudflare/Upstash) vs origin enforcement, sizing per-user vs per-IP vs per-endpoint quotas, returning the right 429 response with Retry-After, or fixing the boundary-burst bug in fixed-window limiters. Triggers: 429 too many requests, INCR + EXPIRE, ZADD + ZREMRANGEBYSCORE + ZCARD, X-RateLimit-Remaining header, Cloudflare WAF rate limiting rules, Upstash @upstash/ratelimit, leaky bucket shaping vs policing, distributed rate limiter consistency. NOT for DDoS mitigation specifically (different scale), CAPTCHA / bot management, full WAF design, or per-user quota billing.