PR Research Skill
Systematic exploration of upstream repositories before contributing.
Overview
Research an external codebase to understand how to contribute effectively.
This is the FIRST step before planning or implementing an open source contribution.
When to Use:
- Before contributing to an external repository
- Starting a new open source contribution
- Evaluating whether to contribute to a project
When NOT to Use:
- Researching your own codebase (use
$research)
- Already familiar with the project's guidelines
Workflow
-1. Prior Work Check -> BLOCKING: Check for existing issues/PRs
0. CONTRIBUTING.md -> MANDATORY: Find contribution guidelines
1. Repository Setup -> Clone/identify upstream repo
2. Guidelines Analysis -> Templates, CODE_OF_CONDUCT
3. PR Archaeology -> Analyze merged PRs, commit patterns
4. Maintainer Research -> Response patterns, review expectations
5. Issue Discovery -> Find contribution opportunities
6. Output -> Write research document
Phase -1: Prior Work Check (BLOCKING)
CRITICAL: Before ANY research, check if someone is already working on this.
gh issue list -R <owner/repo> --state open --search "<topic keywords>" --limit 20
gh pr list -R <owner/repo> --state open --search "<topic keywords>" --limit 20
gh pr list -R <owner/repo> --state merged --search "<topic keywords>" --limit 10
| Finding |
Action |
| Open issue exists |
Link to it, don't create duplicate |
| Open PR exists |
Don't duplicate work |
| Recently merged PR |
Verify fix, no work needed |
| No prior work found |
Proceed to Phase 0 |
Phase 0: CONTRIBUTING.md Discovery (BLOCKING)
CRITICAL: Do not proceed without finding contribution guidelines.
cat CONTRIBUTING.md 2>/dev/null
cat .github/CONTRIBUTING.md 2>/dev/null
cat docs/CONTRIBUTING.md 2>/dev/null
grep -i "contribut" README.md | head -10
Extract Key Requirements
| Requirement |
Where to Find |
| Commit format |
"Commit messages" section |
| PR process |
"Pull Requests" section |
| Testing requirements |
"Testing" section |
| Code style |
"Style" section |
| CLA/DCO |
"Legal" or "License" section |
Phase 3: PR Archaeology
CRITICAL: Understand what successful PRs look like.
gh pr list --state merged --limit 20
git log --oneline -30 | head -20
git log --oneline -30 | grep -E "^[a-f0-9]+ (feat|fix|docs|refactor|test|chore)(\(.*\))?:"
PR Size Analysis
| Size |
Files |
Lines |
Likelihood |
| Small |
1-3 |
<100 |
High acceptance |
| Medium |
4-10 |
100-500 |
Moderate |
| Large |
10+ |
500+ |
Needs discussion first |
Phase 5: Issue Discovery
gh issue list --label "good first issue" --state open
gh issue list --label "help wanted" --state open
gh issue list --state open --json assignees,title,number | \
jq -r '.[] | select(.assignees | length == 0) | "#\(.number): \(.title)"' | head -10
Output
Write to .agents/research/YYYY-MM-DD-pr-{repo-slug}.md
# PR Research: {repo-name}
## Executive Summary
{2-3 sentences: project health, contribution friendliness}
## Contribution Guidelines
|----------|--------|------------------|
| CONTRIBUTING.md | Present/Missing | {summary} |
| PR Template | Present/Missing | {required sections} |
## PR Patterns
- **Average size**: X files, Y lines
- **Commit style**: {conventional/imperative/etc}
- **Review time**: ~X days
## Contribution Opportunities
|-------|------|------------|
| #N | bug/feat | easy/medium |
## Next Steps
-> `$pr-plan .agents/research/YYYY-MM-DD-pr-{repo}.md`
Anti-Patterns
| DON'T |
DO INSTEAD |
| Skip guidelines check |
Always read CONTRIBUTING.md first |
| Ignore PR patterns |
Study successful merged PRs |
| Start with large PRs |
Begin with small, focused changes |
Workflow Integration
$pr-research <repo> -> $pr-plan <research> -> implement -> $pr-prep
Examples
Research Upstream Before Contributing
User says: "Do PR research for owner/repo before I propose a fix."
What happens:
- Inspect contribution guidelines and governance files.
- Analyze merged PR patterns and conventions.
- Produce a research artifact with opportunities and risks.
Scope Discovery
User says: "Find small starter contribution options in this repo."
What happens:
- Scan issues/labels and prior merged work.
- Classify candidates by difficulty and scope.
- Recommend a smallest-safe starting contribution.
Troubleshooting
| Problem |
Cause |
Solution |
| No contribution guide found |
Repo lacks standard files |
Infer conventions from merged PR history and maintainers' comments |
| Too many possible issues |
Scope not constrained |
Filter by labels, component paths, and recent maintainer activity |
| Suggested work seems risky |
Hidden dependency or broad blast radius |
Downscope to narrower file/domain boundary and restate assumptions |
| Output is too generic |
Insufficient repository evidence |
Add concrete file/PR references and explicit pattern findings |
Reference Documents
