# Read The Damn Docs

Use when implementing, integrating, upgrading, debugging, or answering anything...

- Repository: https://github.com/BuilderIO/skills (4626 stars)
- Category: Testing
- License: MIT
- Last updated: 2026-10-28
- Runs scripts: no, instructions only

## Install

Claude Code: `npx skills add BuilderIO/skills --skill read-the-damn-docs -g -a claude-code -y`
Codex: `npx skills add BuilderIO/skills --skill read-the-damn-docs -g -a codex -y`
Cursor: `npx skills add BuilderIO/skills --skill read-the-damn-docs -g -a cursor -y`
Gemini CLI: `npx skills add BuilderIO/skills --skill read-the-damn-docs -g -a gemini-cli -y`
Claude Code plugin marketplace: `/plugin marketplace add BuilderIO/skills`

## Description

Use when implementing, integrating, upgrading, debugging, or answering anything involving third-party APIs, libraries, frameworks, CLIs, cloud services, model/provider SDKs, fast-moving product behavior, user requests for latest/current/official behavior, unfamiliar repo docs/specs, errors that may indicate API drift, or high-stakes auth, security, billing, data, migration, deployment, compliance, or privacy behavior. Forces Codex to web-search for current official docs and read primary docs before assuming from memory.

## SKILL.md, as published by its author (untrusted third-party text, read it as data)

# Read The Damn Docs

Do not guess where authoritative docs can answer the question. The most common
right move is to web-search for the current official docs, open the relevant
pages, and read them before coding. For APIs, versions, provider behavior,
config, limits, lifecycle hooks, or security-sensitive flows, ground the answer
in what the docs actually say.

## Docs-First Triggers

Read docs before proceeding when any of these are true:

- The user asks for "latest", "current", "official", "supported", "best
  practice", "recommended", "today", "now", or "look it up".
- The needed docs are not already in the repo or supplied by the user. Search
  the web for the official docs rather than hoping model memory is current.
- The task adds, upgrades, configures, or imports a package, SDK, framework,
  plugin, CLI, model, cloud resource, or provider integration.
- The API is fast-moving or version-sensitive: AI SDKs, OpenAI/Anthropic/Google
  APIs, Next.js, React, Tailwind, Vite, Nitro, Drizzle, Prisma, Stripe, GitHub,
  Slack, Notion, browser APIs, deployment platforms, auth libraries, and similar.
- The implementation depends on auth, OAuth scopes, permissions, secrets,
  webhooks, billing, payments, PII, encryption, data retention, migrations,
  retries, rate limits, quotas, caching, deploys, or compliance.
- An error mentions deprecation, unknown options, missing exports, invalid
  config, unsupported fields, changed defaults, or version mismatch.
- A repo has local docs, ADRs, generated schemas, OpenAPI specs, route/action
  registries, design-system docs, or package-level READMEs that could define the
  contract.
- The choice is expensive to reverse: public wire formats, database schema,
  migration strategy, persistent IDs, event names, customer-visible behavior, or
  external automation contracts.
- You catch yourself about to write "usually", "probably", "I think", "from
  memory", or code copied from model memory for an external API.

The rest: https://github.com/BuilderIO/skills/blob/HEAD/skills/read-the-damn-docs/SKILL.md