Design Session (ds)

Turn ideas into fully-formed designs through collaborative dialogue.

When to Use

Trigger on:

• User types ds
• User wants to brainstorm or explore an idea
• User says "design a feature" or "let's think through X"
• Before creating a conductor track

The Process

1. Understand the Context

First, check out the current project state:

• Read existing docs, files, recent commits
• Understand what already exists
• Know the tech stack and constraints

2. Explore the Idea

Ask questions one at a time to refine the idea:

• Prefer multiple choice questions when possible
• Only one question per message
• Focus on: purpose, constraints, success criteria

3. Present Approaches

Propose 2-3 different approaches with trade-offs:

• Lead with your recommended option
• Explain the reasoning
• Let the user choose

4. Build the Design

Present the design in small sections (200-300 words each):

• Ask after each section: "Does this look right so far?"
• Cover: architecture, components, data flow, error handling
• Be ready to go back and clarify

After the Design

Create the Track

After design validation, create the track and save:

1. Run /conductor-newtrack <description> to create the track
2. Design is saved to: conductor/tracks/<track_id>/design.md
3. Spec and plan are generated from the design

Next Steps

After design is complete, say:

"Design complete. Run /conductor-newtrack <description> to create the track with spec and plan."

Key Principles

• One question at a time - Don't overwhelm
• Multiple choice preferred - Easier to answer
• YAGNI ruthlessly - Remove unnecessary features
• Explore alternatives - Always propose 2-3 approaches
• Incremental validation - Present in sections, validate each
• Be flexible - Go back when something doesn't make sense