blog/.agents/skills/standards-verification/SKILL.md

name, description

name	description
standards-verification	Use this skill sparingly when a new major function or feature has been implemented, when the user explicitly asks to verify standards, or as a debugging tool to analyze code issues. Targets only modified or relevant files via git status/diff and evaluates them against the project standards document.

Standards Verification Skill

This skill performs targeted architectural and stylistic compliance verification for new or modified code in this repository.

Important

Invocation Policy: Call this skill sparingly and only when needed. Valid Triggers:

1. A new major function or architectural feature has been implemented.
2. The user asks to call it or requests standards verification.
3. An error, test failure, or regression has occurred, and you are using this skill as a debugging tool to determine where the code diverges from project standards.

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1. Targeted Inspection Scope (Not the Whole Codebase)

Do NOT scan or audit the whole codebase unless specifically requested by the user or strictly necessary for whole-system refactors.

Instead, narrow the scope to targeted sections using Git:

1. Check Modified Files:

   git status -s
   

2. Inspect Exact Changes:

   git diff HEAD
   

   Or for staged changes:

   git diff --staged
   

3. Identify Changed Sections: Focus only on the files, functions, templates, or styles touched in the current task.

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2. Standards Evaluation Workflow

To verify compliance, read the dedicated project standards document:

• Authoritative document: .agents/standards.md (or local skill reference: references/standards.md).

Evaluate the targeted changes against the core standard pillars:

1. Design System & CSS Rules:

   • Are any anti-patterns present? Check for backdrop-filter, box-shadow, text-shadow (other than none), gradients, or transitions with delays/curves.
   • Are border radii strictly bounded between 0px and 4px?
   • Are colors utilizing CSS custom properties from tokens.css?
   • Is styling modularized without inline <style> tags?

2. Templating & Eleventy Architecture:

   • Does post rendering adhere to layout inheritance (base.njk -> post.njk)?
   • Are collections (posts, tagList) properly filtered using isPostPublic?
   • If a post is marked hidden, does the layout emit <meta name="robots" content="noindex, nofollow">?

3. Content & Frontmatter Contracts:

   • Are required frontmatter keys (title, date, tags, excerpt) valid and conforming to schema length invariants?
   • Are wikilinks and Obsidian attachments normalized?

4. Server & Security Invariants:

   • Does server.js preserve security headers (X-Content-Type-Options: nosniff, X-Frame-Options: DENY, Referrer-Policy: strict-origin-when-cross-origin)?
   • Is path traversal protection in place for all file-serving and API endpoints?

5. Test-Driven Development (TDD) Invariants:

   • Were automated test cases written before functional code was modified?
   • Are adversarial test cases included (boundary inputs, nulls, invalid configs)?
   • Do all tests pass (npm test)?

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3. Stylistic & Architectural Reporting

Compile a structured report highlighting:

• Conformant Highlights: Key standards cleanly satisfied.
• Stylistic Issues & Deviations: Any formatting inconsistencies, unneeded inline styles, or naming anomalies.
• Remediation Steps: Concrete, minimal code adjustments to bring the implementation into full compliance.

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4. Debugging with Standards Verification

When using this skill as a debugging tool to troubleshoot broken builds, failed tests, or runtime bugs:

1. Locate the Error: Inspect test failure outputs or server logs to isolate the failing component.
2. Correlate with Standards: Compare the problematic implementation against .agents/standards.md.
3. Explain the Discrepancy: Specifically identify where the code is out of touch with project standards (e.g. missing input guards for null, collections bypassing isPostPublic, un-sanitized slug paths).
4. Suggest Root Cause & Fix: Suggest why those issues cause an error and provide the targeted fix.