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principle-exhaust-the-design-space SKILL.md skillA

This file is byte-identical to the first copy the registry indexed, one of 4 indexed copies. Same content hash, so the same checks give both the same grade.

principle-exhaust-the-design-space from iap/pstack-hermes is an agent skill: a SKILL.md folder an AI agent loads when a task calls for it.

Install it, pinned

mdr add iap/pstack-hermes/principle-exhaust-the-design-space@git:20261006.f7c5841

Pins git:20261006.f7c5841 in mdr.lock. Pin the fingerprint instead.

Audit grade: A, 17 of 17 checks passed
Kind: SKILL.md skill
Repository: iap/pstack-hermes
Path: skills/principle-exhaust-the-design-space/SKILL.md
Versions recorded: 1
Latest version: git:20261006.f7c5841, committed Oct 6, 2026
Size: 1,152 bytes
Repository stars: 32
License: a license file GitHub does not identify

Apply when facing a novel UI interaction or architectural decision with no precedent in the codebase. Build 2-3 competing prototypes and compare side by side before committing.

Collected from public GitHub. Every version is saved exactly as it was and never changes. Install it at an exact version with the mdr tool, and every file is checked before it reaches your agent. The main file is checked against the SHA-256 fingerprint recorded here, and the others against the fingerprints GitHub keeps for its source commit. The automatic checks below grade the latest version, and the same checks always give the same file the same grade.

What the file says

# Exhaust the Design Space

When a novel interaction or architectural decision has no established precedent, explore several concrete alternatives before implementation. Building the wrong thing costs more than exploring three options.

**The rule.** When the right answer is not obvious, build 2-3 competing prototypes or sketches. Compare them side by side. Only then commit. Design it twice is this rule by another name. A second flavor of the first shape does not count.

**When it applies:**
- Novel UI interactions (no prior art in the codebase)
- Architectural choices with multiple viable approaches
- Product design decisions where user experience depends on feel, not logic

**When it doesn't:**
- Mechanical implementation where the pattern is established
- Bug fixes or refactors with a clear target state
- Changes where constraints dictate a single viable approach

Read the whole file at its exact version.

How to install

The exact contents, by fingerprint

mdr add iap/pstack-hermes/principle-exhaust-the-design-space@sha256:8583310d7297b782

The line at the top of this page pins the label git:20261006.f7c5841, which is what most people want. This one pins the sha256 fingerprint of the contents instead, so it survives a label being moved. Either way the exact version is written to mdr.lock, and mdr install downloads and checks those contents again, so it installs them exactly or stops with an error.

Badge

[![mdr](https://markdownregistry.com/badge/art_qoabdyzxpxphhbbh.svg)](https://markdownregistry.com/a/art_qoabdyzxpxphhbbh)

2 badge image fetches in 30 days. What the badge shows.

Versions

The registry has recorded 1 version of this file, committed on Oct 6, 2026.

version	committed	commit	size	audit
git:20261006.f7c5841 latest	2026-10-06	f7c5841	1,152 B	A	view

Audit of the latest version

A 17 of 17 checks passed. Fixed automatic checks with no AI involved, so the same checks give the same answer every run.

pass: Frontmatter block present
pass: Frontmatter declares a name
pass: Frontmatter declares a description
pass: Size between 200 bytes and 200 KB (1152 bytes)
pass: No zero-width or bidi control characters
pass: No instruction hidden inside an HTML comment
pass: No link to an exfiltration or paste host
pass: No credential-shaped string
pass: No instruction to send local credentials anywhere
pass: No text hidden with inline styles
pass: No prompt-injection phrasing
pass: No curl or wget piped into a shell
pass: No recursive delete of root, home or parent
pass: No instruction to read or print local credentials
pass: No base64 blob over 200 characters
pass: No link to a raw IP address
pass: No script tag

Source

GitHub

iap/pstack-hermes · 32 stars · license a license file GitHub does not identify · pushed 2026-11-04 · branch master

API

GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/artifacts/art_qoabdyzxpxphhbbh
GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/resolve?ref=iap/pstack-hermes/principle-exhaust-the-design-space
GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/blob/8583310d7297b7823d75494faa57b003564d436807febecdecbd8321abe5cf6e

Your AI assistant does the legwork. You hear about the deals worth your word. Hand yours the standing instructions at modelranch.com and it joins the network that reads files like this one.

Guides: the SKILL.md format and its required fields · what to check before you install a skill · how to pin a skill to an exact version · where to find agent skills · keeping a team on the same skills · which agent file does what.

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