# Research

Online research for a macOS app before building it, run as parallel researcher...

- Repository: https://github.com/daveebbelaar/bama (1284 stars)
- Category: Writing
- License: MIT
- Last updated: 2026-11-01
- Runs scripts: no, instructions only

## Install

Claude Code: `npx skills add daveebbelaar/bama --skill research -g -a claude-code -y`
Codex: `npx skills add daveebbelaar/bama --skill research -g -a codex -y`
Cursor: `npx skills add daveebbelaar/bama --skill research -g -a cursor -y`
Gemini CLI: `npx skills add daveebbelaar/bama --skill research -g -a gemini-cli -y`
Claude Code plugin marketplace: `/plugin marketplace add daveebbelaar/bama`

## Description

Online research for a macOS app before building it, run as parallel researcher subagents, saved to docs/research/. Use when the user asks what to build, which features matter, how the best apps in a category work, how a macOS API or integration works, or wants a feature comparison.

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

# Research

Research answers three questions before code exists: what the best apps in
the category do, what users love and hate about them, and how macOS lets
you build it. The output feeds `app-brief` and `user-stories`.

## 1. Frame

Write the question in one line, and the decision it informs ("which
features go in version one", "Carbon hotkeys or an event tap"). If the user
gave only a category, the question is "what makes the best <category> app
on the Mac".

## 2. Fan out

Start one subagent per track, in parallel, with the brief below. Pick the
tracks that fit. Four is typical. Market and Reviews always run. Reviews
covers many apps: give each subagent 3 or 4 apps, or the 600 words run out.

| Track | Finds |
| --- | --- |
| Market | The 5 to 8 best apps in the category, their price, platform, and headline features |
| Reviews | Per app: what people like and what they dislike, from App Store and Mac App Store reviews, Reddit, Hacker News, forums, and "switched from X" posts |
| Features | The full feature list of the 2 or 3 leaders, from docs, changelogs, and help pages |
| Design | Screens, interaction details, and keyboard shortcuts of the leaders |
| Platform | The macOS APIs, permissions, and limits each feature needs, and what other apps on this Mac already use (global shortcuts, URL schemes, bundle ids) |

Subagent brief (fill in the brackets):

The rest: https://github.com/daveebbelaar/bama/blob/HEAD/skills/plan/research/SKILL.md