Skills Guide

Add New Data Modality

VerifiedCaution

Add a new data modality to the lifelog system following a checklist including proto, schema, and collector module.

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Sby Skills Guide Bot
DevelopmentAdvanced
7/23/2026
Claude Code
#rust#protobuf#schema-migration#code-generation#data-collection

Recommended for

Backend developerClaude CodeCode reviewFrontend developerFullstack developerRefactoring

Automated summary

Walks through adding a new data modality to the lifelog system, from the protobuf definition down to the Rust collector module and the database schema.

Strengths

  • Ordered, explicit checklist covering all seven steps of adding a modality
  • Leverages project commands (`just check`, `just validate`) for code regeneration and validation
  • Names the exact files to touch and points to existing patterns such as ScreenFrame for trait implementations

Limitations

  • Assumes prior familiarity with the lifelog repo layout (proto, common, server, collector)
  • The modality name comes from $ARGUMENTS, so the user must supply it correctly
  • Does not spell out the collection logic itself, which is left to the implementer
When to use it

Use it when wiring a brand-new data source into the lifelog pipeline across every layer of the system.

When not to use it

Avoid it for small tweaks to an existing modality or for work outside the lifelog repository.

Security analysis

Caution
Quality score82/100

No destructive, exfiltration, or obfuscated behavior is present. The workflow is a normal codebase-modification checklist, but it invokes shell/build tooling and relies on project `just` recipes, so trust in the target repository is required.

Findings
  • •No allowed-tools declared even though the workflow requires file edits and shell commands (`just check`, `just validate`), so execution depends on ambient agent permissions.
  • •Runs repository-defined `just` recipes, which can execute arbitrary project commands; only use in a trusted repository.
How this analysis is made

Examples

Add an audio transcript modality
Add a new data modality called audio_transcript to the lifelog system.
Add a heart-rate modality
Add a new data modality called heart_rate to the lifelog system.
Add a location modality
Add a new data modality called location_ping to the lifelog system.

name: new-modality description: Add a new data modality to the lifelog system (proto, schema, collector module) disable-model-invocation: true

Add a new data modality called: $ARGUMENTS.

Follow this checklist in order:

  1. Proto definition: Add message type to proto/lifelog.proto and enum variant to DataModality in proto/lifelog_types.proto
  2. Rebuild proto: just check to regenerate code
  3. Proto impls: Add DataType + Modality trait impls in common/lifelog-proto/src/lib.rs (follow existing patterns like ScreenFrame)
  4. DB schema: Add TableSchema entry in server/src/schema.rs with fields and indexes
  5. Collector module: Create collector/src/modules/<name>.rs with the collection logic
  6. Register module: Add pub mod <name>; in collector/src/modules/mod.rs and wire into collector startup
  7. Validate: Run just validate to ensure everything compiles and tests pass

From the file to a first result

The download contains exactly the content displayed on this page. This copy may differ from the latest version in the source repository.

View the source and supporting files

This download contains SKILL.md only. Any scripts, references, templates and dependencies are not included. Get the required files from the source, preserving their directory structure, before continuing.

1. Download the file

Download SKILL.md

From the root of a test project, save the file as .skill-downloads/add-new-data-modality-mrx3xzvq/SKILL.md, or use the command below. This folder is for inspecting the skill before installation.

Command for macOS/Linux or WSL: requires a POSIX shell and curl. On Windows without WSL, use the download button and create the folder manually.

mkdir -p '.skill-downloads/add-new-data-modality-mrx3xzvq' && curl --fail --show-error --location 'https://skills-guides.com/api/skills/add-new-data-modality-mrx3xzvq/download' --output '.skill-downloads/add-new-data-modality-mrx3xzvq/SKILL.md.part' && mv '.skill-downloads/add-new-data-modality-mrx3xzvq/SKILL.md.part' '.skill-downloads/add-new-data-modality-mrx3xzvq/SKILL.md'

2. Check prerequisites

Read SKILL.md before using it. If it references scripts or external services, inspect them and prepare the required access in your test environment.

No recognized prerequisites section in this file. This does not mean it is self-contained: libraries, tools and access requirements may be mentioned elsewhere in the content or source repository.

The platforms on this page are catalog indications. The paths below follow tool documentation; they do not prove this skill has been run in those tools. No minimum tool version is confirmed for this listing.

3. Load the skill

After inspection, copy the complete folder into your project using one of the commands below, then open a new tool session. The command stops if a folder with the same name already exists: compare the files before replacing it.

Claude Code
test -f '.skill-downloads/add-new-data-modality-mrx3xzvq/SKILL.md' && test -s '.skill-downloads/add-new-data-modality-mrx3xzvq/SKILL.md' && mkdir -p '.claude/skills' && test ! -e '.claude/skills/new-modality' && cp -R '.skill-downloads/add-new-data-modality-mrx3xzvq' '.claude/skills/new-modality'

OpenSkills

OpenSkills must already be installed. The local install/read procedure is checked with OpenSkills 1.5.0, which requires Node.js ≥ 20.6.0. Catalog slugs are not resolved automatically.

Official OpenSkills installation
openskills install './.skill-downloads/add-new-data-modality-mrx3xzvq'

openskills read 'add-new-data-modality-mrx3xzvq'

Reading should display the installed file content and its base directory. It does not run the skill or install its dependencies.

For an agent that reads AGENTS.md, then sync the index. This command changes AGENTS.md: review the diff before using it.

openskills sync

Manual method or another tool: attach SKILL.md to a conversation, or open it in an agent that can read files. Include any required supporting resources. No universal folder is recognized by every tool.

4. Try a first task

Use a short, synthetic input: an API endpoint, a small document or an interface brief. In a new conversation, attach the file or give the agent its path, then adapt this request:

Read .skill-downloads/add-new-data-modality-mrx3xzvq/SKILL.md and apply its instructions to this example: [describe a test input]. Identify any missing files, dependencies or access. Produce the result requested by the skill without inventing data or running unreviewed scripts.

Expected result: output matching the skill instructions, or a precise list of missing prerequisites. A read confirmation alone does not validate a first use. If an external resource is unavailable, that path remains untested.

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