Agentation Self-Driving Mode
Autonomously critique a web page by adding design annotations via the Agentation toolbar — in a visible headed browser so the user can watch the agent work in real time, like watching a self-driving car navigate.
Launch — Always Headed
The browser MUST be visible. Never run headless. The user watches you scan, hover, click, and annotate.
Preflight: Verify agent-browser is available before anything else:
command -v agent-browser >/dev/null || { echo "ERROR: agent-browser not found. Install the agent-browser skill first."; exit 1; }
Launch: Try opening directly first. Only close an existing session if the open command fails with a stale session error — this avoids killing a browser someone else is using:
agent-browser --headed open <url> 2>&1 || { agent-browser close 2>/dev/null; agent-browser --headed open <url>; }
Then verify the Agentation toolbar is present and expand it:
agent-browser eval "document.querySelector('[data-feedback-toolbar]') ? 'toolbar found' : 'NOT FOUND'"
agent-browser eval "document.querySelector('[data-feedback-toolbar][class*=expanded]') ? 'already expanded' : (document.querySelector('[class*=toggleContent]')?.click(), 'expanding')"
agent-browser snapshot -i
"Block page interactions" must be checked (default: on).
eval quoting rule: Always use [class*=toggleContent] (no quotes around the attribute value) in eval strings. Do not use double-bang in eval because bash treats it as history expansion. Do not use backslash-escaped inner quotes either, as they break unpredictably across shells.
Critical: How to Create Annotations
Standard element clicks (click @ref) do NOT trigger annotation dialogs. The Agentation overlay intercepts pointer events at the coordinate level. Use coordinate-based mouse events — this also makes the interaction visible in the browser as the cursor moves across the page.
@ref compatibility: Only click, fill, type, hover, focus, check, select, drag support @ref syntax. The commands scrollintoview, get box, and eval do NOT — they expect CSS selectors. Use eval with querySelector for scrolling and position lookup.
agent-browser snapshot -i
agent-browser eval "document.querySelector('h1').scrollIntoView({block:'center'})"
agent-browser eval "((r) => r.x+','+r.y+','+r.width+','+r.height)(document.querySelector('h1').getBoundingClientRect())"
agent-browser mouse move <centerX> <centerY>
agent-browser mouse down left
agent-browser mouse up left
agent-browser snapshot -i
agent-browser fill @<textboxRef> "Your critique here"
agent-browser click @<addRef>
If no dialog appears after clicking, the toolbar may have collapsed. Re-expand (only if collapsed) and retry:
agent-browser eval "document.querySelector('[data-feedback-toolbar][class*=expanded]') ? 'ok' : (document.querySelector('[class*=toggleContent]')?.click(), 'expanded')"
Building CSS selectors from snapshots
The snapshot shows element roles, names, and refs. Map them to CSS selectors:
| Snapshot line |
CSS selector |
heading "Point at bugs." [ref=e10] |
h1 or h1:first-of-type |
button "npm install agentation Copy" [ref=e15] |
button:has(code) or by text content via eval |
link "Star on GitHub" [ref=e28] |
a[href*=github] |
paragraph (long text...) [ref=e20] |
Target by section: section:nth-of-type(2) p |
When in doubt, use a broader selector and verify with eval:
agent-browser eval "document.querySelector('h2').textContent"
The Loop
Work top-to-bottom through the page. For each annotation:
- Scroll to the target area via eval (
scrollIntoView)
- Pick a specific element — heading, paragraph, button, section container
- Get its bounding box via eval (
getBoundingClientRect)
- Execute the coordinate-click sequence (
mouse move → mouse down → mouse up)
- Read the full snapshot output to find dialog refs at the bottom
- Write the critique (
fill @ref) and submit (click @ref)
- Verify the annotation was added (see below)
- Move to the next area
Verifying annotations
After submitting each annotation, confirm the count increased:
agent-browser eval "document.querySelectorAll('[data-annotation-marker]').length"
If the count didn't increase, the submission failed silently — re-snapshot and check if the dialog is still open.
Aim for 5-8 annotations per page unless told otherwise.
What to Critique
| Area |
What to look for |
| Hero / above the fold |
Headline hierarchy, CTA placement, visual grouping |
| Navigation |
Label styling, category grouping, visual weight |
| Demo / illustrations |
Clarity, depth, animation readability |
| Content sections |
Spacing rhythm, callout treatments, typography hierarchy |
| Key taglines |
Whether resonant lines get enough visual emphasis |
| CTAs and footer |
Conversion weight, visual separation, final actions |
Critique Style
2-3 sentences max per annotation:
- Specific and actionable: "Stack the install command below the subheading at 16px" not "fix the layout"
- 1-2 concrete alternatives: Reference CSS values, layout patterns, or design systems
- Name the principle: Visual hierarchy, Gestalt grouping, whitespace, emphasis, conversion design
- Reference comparable products: "Like how Stripe/Linear/Vercel handles this"
Bad: "This section needs work"
Good: "This bullet list reads like docs, not a showcase. Use a 3-column card grid with icons — similar to Stripe's guidelines pattern. Creates visual rhythm and scannability."
Install
The skill must be symlinked into ~/.claude/skills/ for Claude Code to discover it:
ln -s "$(pwd)/skills/agentation-self-driving" ~/.claude/skills/agentation-self-driving
Restart Claude Code after installing. Verify with /agentation-self-driving — if it loads the skill instructions, the symlink is working.
Troubleshooting
- "Browser not launched. Call launch first.": Stale session from a previous run — run
agent-browser close 2>/dev/null then retry the --headed open command
- Toolbar not found on page: Agentation isn't installed — run
/agentation to set it up first
- No dialog after clicking: Toolbar collapsed — re-expand with the state-aware eval (check
[class*=expanded] first), retry
- Wrong element targeted: Click Cancel, scroll to intended element, retry with correct coordinates
- Add button stays disabled: Text wasn't filled — re-snapshot and fill the textbox
- Page navigated: "Block page interactions" is off — enable via toolbar settings
- Annotation count didn't increase: Submission failed — dialog may still be open, re-snapshot and check
- Interrupted mid-run (Ctrl+C): The browser stays open with whatever state it was in. Run
agent-browser close to clean up before starting a new session
agent-browser Pitfalls
These will silently break the workflow if you're not aware of them:
| Pitfall |
What happens |
Fix |
scrollintoview @ref |
Crashes: "Unsupported token @ref while parsing css selector" |
Use eval "document.querySelector('sel').scrollIntoView({block:'center'})" |
get box @ref |
Same crash — get box parses refs as CSS selectors |
Use eval "((r)=>r.x+','+r.y+','+r.width+','+r.height)(document.querySelector('sel').getBoundingClientRect())" |
eval with double-bang |
Bash expands double-bang as history substitution before the command runs |
Use expr !== null or expr ? true : false instead |
eval with backslash-escaped quotes |
Escaped inner quotes break across shells |
Drop the quotes: [class*=toggleContent] works for simple values without spaces |
snapshot -i | head -50 |
Annotation dialog refs (textbox "What should change?", Add, Cancel) appear at the BOTTOM of the snapshot |
Always read the full snapshot output — never truncate |
click @ref on overlay elements |
The click goes through to the real DOM, bypassing the Agentation overlay |
Use mouse move → mouse down left → mouse up left for coordinate-based clicks that the overlay intercepts |
--headed open fails with "Browser not launched" |
Stale sessions from previous runs block new launches |
Run agent-browser close 2>/dev/null then retry the open command |
Rule of thumb: @ref works for interaction commands (click, fill, type, hover). For everything else (eval, get, scrollintoview), use CSS selectors via querySelector in an eval.
Two-Session Workflow (Full Self-Driving)
With MCP connected (toolbar shows "MCP Connected"), annotations auto-send to any listening agent. This enables:
- Session 1 (this skill): Watches the page, adds critique annotations in the visible browser
- Session 2: Runs
agentation_watch_annotations in a loop, receives annotations, edits code to address each one
The user watches Session 1 drive through the page in the browser while Session 2 fixes issues in the codebase — fully autonomous design review and implementation.
