Open Questions Tools Skill

Helpers for the open questions register (open_questions.md). Generates sequential QIDs and appends entries.

Invocation

Always invoke via the shim:

bash .claude/scripts/demoswarm.sh openq <command> [options]

Do not set PATH or call helpers directly. The shim handles resolution.

Operating Invariants

Repo root only

• Assume working directory is repo root.
• All paths are repo-root-relative.

QID format

• Pattern: OQ-<FLOW>-<NNN> (e.g., OQ-SIG-001, OQ-PLAN-002, OQ-BUILD-003)
• Flow codes: SIG (signal), PLAN (plan), BUILD (build), GATE (gate), DEPLOY (deploy), WISDOM (wisdom)
• Sequential within flow (auto-incremented from existing entries)

Append-only

• Never modifies existing entries
• Only appends new questions at the end

Allowed Users

Primary:

• clarifier
• Flow orchestrators (when questions arise mid-flow)

Secondary:

• Any agent that needs to register an open question rather than guessing

Command Reference

Quick Examples

Generate next QID

# Get next available QID for signal flow
bash .claude/scripts/demoswarm.sh openq next-id \
  --file ".runs/feat-auth/signal/open_questions.md" \
  --prefix "SIG"
# stdout: OQ-SIG-003 (next available)

# For plan flow
bash .claude/scripts/demoswarm.sh openq next-id \
  --file ".runs/feat-auth/plan/open_questions.md" \
  --prefix "PLAN"
# stdout: OQ-PLAN-001 (if empty)

Append a question

# Append new open question (auto-generates QID)
bash .claude/scripts/demoswarm.sh openq append \
  --file ".runs/feat-auth/signal/open_questions.md" \
  --prefix "SIG" \
  --question "Should authentication use JWT or session cookies?" \
  --default "Use JWT for stateless authentication" \
  --impact "Session cookies require server-side state management"
# stdout: OQ-SIG-003 (the assigned QID)

Contract Rules

1. stdout: QID string for both next-id and append (append returns the assigned QID)
2. exit code: 0 on success, non-zero on failure
3. File missing: next-id returns first ID (e.g., OQ-SIG-001); append creates file with header if needed
4. Auto-increment: append automatically generates the next QID (no need to call next-id first)

Entry Format

Appended entries follow this format:

- QID: OQ-SIG-003
  - Q: Should authentication use JWT or session cookies? [OPEN]
  - Suggested default: Use JWT for stateless authentication
  - Impact if different: Session cookies require server-side state management
  - Added: 2025-12-12T10:30:00Z

For Agent Authors

In clarifier or when questions arise:

1. Just call append — it auto-generates and returns the QID
2. Never hand-roll QID counters — let the tool handle sequencing
3. Use next-id only if you need to preview the ID before appending

Example pattern:

# Simple: append directly (auto-generates QID, returns it)
QID=$(bash .claude/scripts/demoswarm.sh openq append \
  --file ".runs/${RUN_ID}/signal/open_questions.md" \
  --prefix "SIG" \
  --question "What is the expected session timeout?" \
  --default "30 minutes of inactivity" \
  --impact "Shorter timeout improves security but reduces UX")

echo "Registered question: $QID"

Flow Codes Reference

Installation

The Rust implementation is preferred. Install to repo-local directory:

cargo install --path tools/demoswarm-runs-tools --root .demoswarm

The shim will automatically resolve in order:

1. .demoswarm/bin/demoswarm (repo-local install, preferred)
2. demoswarm on PATH (global install)
3. cargo run fallback (dev environments)
4. Python fallback (legacy)