@qwen-code/qwen-code 0.14.0-preview.0 → 0.14.0-preview.2

package/bundled/qc-helper/docs/features/skills.md

@@ -0,0 +1,289 @@
+# Agent Skills
+
+> Create, manage, and share Skills to extend Qwen Code's capabilities.
+
+This guide shows you how to create, use, and manage Agent Skills in **Qwen Code**. Skills are modular capabilities that extend the model's effectiveness through organized folders containing instructions (and optionally scripts/resources).
+
+## Prerequisites
+
+- Qwen Code (recent version)
+- Basic familiarity with Qwen Code ([Quickstart](../quickstart.md))
+
+## What are Agent Skills?
+
+Agent Skills package expertise into discoverable capabilities. Each Skill consists of a `SKILL.md` file with instructions that the model can load when relevant, plus optional supporting files like scripts and templates.
+
+### How Skills are invoked
+
+Skills are **model-invoked** — the model autonomously decides when to use them based on your request and the Skill's description. This is different from slash commands, which are **user-invoked** (you explicitly type `/command`).
+
+If you want to invoke a Skill explicitly, use the `/skills` slash command:
+
+```bash
+/skills <skill-name>
+```
+
+Use autocomplete to browse available Skills and descriptions.
+
+### Benefits
+
+- Extend Qwen Code for your workflows
+- Share expertise across your team via git
+- Reduce repetitive prompting
+- Compose multiple Skills for complex tasks
+
+## Create a Skill
+
+Skills are stored as directories containing a `SKILL.md` file.
+
+### Personal Skills
+
+Personal Skills are available across all your projects. Store them in `~/.qwen/skills/`:
+
+```bash
+mkdir -p ~/.qwen/skills/my-skill-name
+```
+
+Use personal Skills for:
+
+- Your individual workflows and preferences
+- Skills you're developing
+- Personal productivity helpers
+
+### Project Skills
+
+Project Skills are shared with your team. Store them in `.qwen/skills/` within your project:
+
+```bash
+mkdir -p .qwen/skills/my-skill-name
+```
+
+Use project Skills for:
+
+- Team workflows and conventions
+- Project-specific expertise
+- Shared utilities and scripts
+
+Project Skills can be checked into git and automatically become available to teammates.
+
+## Write `SKILL.md`
+
+Create a `SKILL.md` file with YAML frontmatter and Markdown content:
+
+```yaml
+---
+name: your-skill-name
+description: Brief description of what this Skill does and when to use it
+---
+
+# Your Skill Name
+
+## Instructions
+Provide clear, step-by-step guidance for Qwen Code.
+
+## Examples
+Show concrete examples of using this Skill.
+```
+
+### Field requirements
+
+Qwen Code currently validates that:
+
+- `name` is a non-empty string
+- `description` is a non-empty string
+
+Recommended conventions (not strictly enforced yet):
+
+- Use lowercase letters, numbers, and hyphens in `name`
+- Make `description` specific: include both **what** the Skill does and **when** to use it (key words users will naturally mention)
+
+## Add supporting files
+
+Create additional files alongside `SKILL.md`:
+
+```text
+my-skill/
+├── SKILL.md (required)
+├── reference.md (optional documentation)
+├── examples.md (optional examples)
+├── scripts/
+│   └── helper.py (optional utility)
+└── templates/
+    └── template.txt (optional template)
+```
+
+Reference these files from `SKILL.md`:
+
+````markdown
+For advanced usage, see [reference.md](reference.md).
+
+Run the helper script:
+
+```bash
+python scripts/helper.py input.txt
+```
+````
+
+## View available Skills
+
+Qwen Code discovers Skills from:
+
+- Personal Skills: `~/.qwen/skills/`
+- Project Skills: `.qwen/skills/`
+- Extension Skills: Skills provided by installed extensions
+
+### Extension Skills
+
+Extensions can provide custom skills that become available when the extension is enabled. These skills are stored in the extension's `skills/` directory and follow the same format as personal and project skills.
+
+Extension skills are automatically discovered and loaded when the extension is installed and enabled.
+
+To see which extensions provide skills, check the extension's `qwen-extension.json` file for a `skills` field.
+
+To view available Skills, ask Qwen Code directly:
+
+```text
+What Skills are available?
+```
+
+Or inspect the filesystem:
+
+```bash
+# List personal Skills
+ls ~/.qwen/skills/
+
+# List project Skills (if in a project directory)
+ls .qwen/skills/
+
+# View a specific Skill's content
+cat ~/.qwen/skills/my-skill/SKILL.md
+```
+
+## Test a Skill
+
+After creating a Skill, test it by asking questions that match your description.
+
+Example: if your description mentions "PDF files":
+
+```text
+Can you help me extract text from this PDF?
+```
+
+The model autonomously decides to use your Skill if it matches the request — you don't need to explicitly invoke it.
+
+## Debug a Skill
+
+If Qwen Code doesn't use your Skill, check these common issues:
+
+### Make the description specific
+
+Too vague:
+
+```yaml
+description: Helps with documents
+```
+
+Specific:
+
+```yaml
+description: Extract text and tables from PDF files, fill forms, merge documents. Use when working with PDFs, forms, or document extraction.
+```
+
+### Verify file path
+
+- Personal Skills: `~/.qwen/skills/<skill-name>/SKILL.md`
+- Project Skills: `.qwen/skills/<skill-name>/SKILL.md`
+
+```bash
+# Personal
+ls ~/.qwen/skills/my-skill/SKILL.md
+
+# Project
+ls .qwen/skills/my-skill/SKILL.md
+```
+
+### Check YAML syntax
+
+Invalid YAML prevents the Skill metadata from loading correctly.
+
+```bash
+cat SKILL.md | head -n 15
+```
+
+Ensure:
+
+- Opening `---` on line 1
+- Closing `---` before Markdown content
+- Valid YAML syntax (no tabs, correct indentation)
+
+### View errors
+
+Run Qwen Code with debug mode to see Skill loading errors:
+
+```bash
+qwen --debug
+```
+
+## Share Skills with your team
+
+You can share Skills through project repositories:
+
+1. Add the Skill under `.qwen/skills/`
+2. Commit and push
+3. Teammates pull the changes
+
+```bash
+git add .qwen/skills/
+git commit -m "Add team Skill for PDF processing"
+git push
+```
+
+## Update a Skill
+
+Edit `SKILL.md` directly:
+
+```bash
+# Personal Skill
+code ~/.qwen/skills/my-skill/SKILL.md
+
+# Project Skill
+code .qwen/skills/my-skill/SKILL.md
+```
+
+Changes take effect the next time you start Qwen Code. If Qwen Code is already running, restart it to load the updates.
+
+## Remove a Skill
+
+Delete the Skill directory:
+
+```bash
+# Personal
+rm -rf ~/.qwen/skills/my-skill
+
+# Project
+rm -rf .qwen/skills/my-skill
+git commit -m "Remove unused Skill"
+```
+
+## Best practices
+
+### Keep Skills focused
+
+One Skill should address one capability:
+
+- Focused: "PDF form filling", "Excel analysis", "Git commit messages"
+- Too broad: "Document processing" (split into smaller Skills)
+
+### Write clear descriptions
+
+Help the model discover when to use Skills by including specific triggers:
+
+```yaml
+description: Analyze Excel spreadsheets, create pivot tables, and generate charts. Use when working with Excel files, spreadsheets, or .xlsx data.
+```
+
+### Test with your team
+
+- Does the Skill activate when expected?
+- Are the instructions clear?
+- Are there missing examples or edge cases?