289cc47631
Broad drift audit against origin/main (b52b63396).
Reference pages (most user-visible drift):
- slash-commands: add /busy, /curator, /footer, /indicator, /redraw, /steer
that were missing; drop non-existent /terminal-setup; fix /q footnote
(resolves to /queue, not /quit); extend CLI-only list with all 24
CLI-only commands in the registry
- cli-commands: add dedicated sections for hermes curator / fallback /
hooks (new subcommands not previously documented); remove stale
hermes honcho standalone section (the plugin registers dynamically
via hermes memory); list curator/fallback/hooks in top-level table;
fix completion to include fish
- toolsets-reference: document the real 52-toolset count; split browser
vs browser-cdp; add discord / discord_admin / spotify / yuanbao;
correct hermes-cli tool count from 36 to 38; fix misleading claim
that hermes-homeassistant adds tools (it's identical to hermes-cli)
- tools-reference: bump tool count 55 -> 68; add 7 Spotify, 5 Yuanbao,
2 Discord toolsets; move browser_cdp/browser_dialog to their own
browser-cdp toolset section
- environment-variables: add 40+ user-facing HERMES_* vars that were
undocumented (--yolo, --accept-hooks, --ignore-*, inference model
override, agent/stream/checkpoint timeouts, OAuth trace, per-platform
batch tuning for Telegram/Discord/Matrix/Feishu/WeCom, cron knobs,
gateway restart/connect timeouts); dedupe the Cron Scheduler section;
replace stale QQ_SANDBOX with QQ_PORTAL_HOST
User-guide (top level):
- cli.md: compression preserves last 20 turns, not 4 (protect_last_n: 20)
- configuration.md: display.platforms is the canonical per-platform
override key; tool_progress_overrides is deprecated and auto-migrated
- profiles.md: model.default is the config key, not model.model
- sessions.md: CLI/TUI session IDs use 6-char hex, gateway uses 8
- checkpoints-and-rollback.md: destructive-command list now matches
_DESTRUCTIVE_PATTERNS (adds rmdir, cp, install, dd)
- docker.md: the container runs as non-root hermes (UID 10000) via
gosu; fix install command (uv pip); add missing --insecure on the
dashboard compose example (required for non-loopback bind)
- security.md: systemctl danger pattern also matches 'restart'
- index.md: built-in tool count 47 -> 68
- integrations/index.md: 6 STT providers, 8 memory providers
- integrations/providers.md: drop fictional dashscope/qwen aliases
Features:
- overview.md: 9 image models (not 8), 9 TTS providers (not 5),
8 memory providers (Supermemory was missing)
- tool-gateway.md: 9 image models
- tools.md: extend common-toolsets list with search / messaging /
spotify / discord / debugging / safe
- fallback-providers.md: add 6 real providers from PROVIDER_REGISTRY
(lmstudio, kimi-coding-cn, stepfun, alibaba-coding-plan,
tencent-tokenhub, azure-foundry)
- plugins.md: Available Hooks table now includes on_session_finalize,
on_session_reset, subagent_stop
- built-in-plugins.md: add the 7 bundled plugins the page didn't
mention (spotify, google_meet, three image_gen providers, two
dashboard examples)
- web-dashboard.md: add --insecure and --tui flags
- cron.md: hermes cron create takes positional schedule/prompt, not
flags
Messaging:
- telegram.md: TELEGRAM_WEBHOOK_SECRET is now REQUIRED when
TELEGRAM_WEBHOOK_URL is set (gateway refuses to start without it
per GHSA-3vpc-7q5r-276h). Biggest user-visible drift in the batch.
- discord.md: HERMES_DISCORD_TEXT_BATCH_SPLIT_DELAY_SECONDS default
is 2.0, not 0.1
- dingtalk.md: document DINGTALK_REQUIRE_MENTION /
FREE_RESPONSE_CHATS / MENTION_PATTERNS / HOME_CHANNEL /
ALLOW_ALL_USERS that the adapter supports
- bluebubbles.md: drop fictional BLUEBUBBLES_SEND_READ_RECEIPTS env
var; the setting lives in platforms.bluebubbles.extra only
- qqbot.md: drop dead QQ_SANDBOX; add real QQ_PORTAL_HOST and
QQ_GROUP_ALLOWED_USERS
- wecom-callback.md: replace 'hermes gateway start' (service-only)
with 'hermes gateway' for first-time setup
Developer-guide:
- architecture.md: refresh tool/toolset counts (61/52), terminal
backend count (7), line counts for run_agent.py (~13.7k), cli.py
(~11.5k), main.py (~10.4k), setup.py (~3.5k), gateway/run.py
(~12.2k), mcp_tool.py (~3.1k); add yuanbao adapter, bump platform
adapter count 18 -> 20
- agent-loop.md: run_agent.py line count 10.7k -> 13.7k
- tools-runtime.md: add vercel_sandbox backend
- adding-tools.md: remove stale 'Discovery import added to
model_tools.py' checklist item (registry auto-discovery)
- adding-platform-adapters.md: mark send_typing / get_chat_info as
concrete base methods; only connect/disconnect/send are abstract
- acp-internals.md: ACP sessions now persist to SessionDB
(~/.hermes/state.db); acp.run_agent call uses
use_unstable_protocol=True
- cron-internals.md: gateway runs scheduler in a dedicated background
thread via _start_cron_ticker, not on a maintenance cycle; locking
is cross-process via fcntl.flock (Unix) / msvcrt.locking (Windows)
- gateway-internals.md: gateway/run.py ~12k lines
- provider-runtime.md: cron DOES support fallback (run_job reads
fallback_providers from config)
- session-storage.md: SCHEMA_VERSION = 11 (not 9); add migrations
10 and 11 (trigram FTS, inline-mode FTS5 re-index); add
api_call_count column to Sessions DDL; document messages_fts_trigram
and state_meta in the architecture tree
- context-compression-and-caching.md: remove the obsolete 'context
pressure warnings' section (warnings were removed for causing
models to give up early)
- context-engine-plugin.md: compress() signature now includes
focus_topic param
- extending-the-cli.md: _build_tui_layout_children signature now
includes model_picker_widget; add to default layout
Also fixed three pre-existing broken links/anchors the build warned
about (docker.md -> api-server.md, yuanbao.md -> cron-jobs.md and
tips#background-tasks, nix-setup.md -> #container-aware-cli).
Regenerated per-skill pages via website/scripts/generate-skill-docs.py
so catalog tables and sidebar are consistent with current SKILL.md
frontmatter.
docusaurus build: clean, no broken links or anchors.
6.6 KiB
title, sidebar_label, description
| title | sidebar_label | description |
|---|---|---|
| Ideation — Generate project ideas via creative constraints | Ideation | Generate project ideas via creative constraints |
{/* This page is auto-generated from the skill's SKILL.md by website/scripts/generate-skill-docs.py. Edit the source SKILL.md, not this page. */}
Ideation
Generate project ideas via creative constraints.
Skill metadata
| Source | Bundled (installed by default) |
| Path | skills/creative/creative-ideation |
| Version | 1.0.0 |
| Author | SHL0MS |
| License | MIT |
| Tags | Creative, Ideation, Projects, Brainstorming, Inspiration |
Reference: full SKILL.md
:::info The following is the complete skill definition that Hermes loads when this skill is triggered. This is what the agent sees as instructions when the skill is active. :::
Creative Ideation
When to use
Use when the user says 'I want to build something', 'give me a project idea', 'I'm bored', 'what should I make', 'inspire me', or any variant of 'I have tools but no direction'. Works for code, art, hardware, writing, tools, and anything that can be made.
Generate project ideas through creative constraints. Constraint + direction = creativity.
How It Works
- Pick a constraint from the library below — random, or matched to the user's domain/mood
- Interpret it broadly — a coding prompt can become a hardware project, an art prompt can become a CLI tool
- Generate 3 concrete project ideas that satisfy the constraint
- If they pick one, build it — create the project, write the code, ship it
The Rule
Every prompt is interpreted as broadly as possible. "Does this include X?" → Yes. The prompts provide direction and mild constraint. Without either, there is no creativity.
Constraint Library
For Developers
Solve your own itch: Build the tool you wished existed this week. Under 50 lines. Ship it today.
Automate the annoying thing: What's the most tedious part of your workflow? Script it away. Two hours to fix a problem that costs you five minutes a day.
The CLI tool that should exist:
Think of a command you've wished you could type. git undo-that-thing-i-just-did. docker why-is-this-broken. npm explain-yourself. Now build it.
Nothing new except glue: Make something entirely from existing APIs, libraries, and datasets. The only original contribution is how you connect them.
Frankenstein week: Take something that does X and make it do Y. A git repo that plays music. A Dockerfile that generates poetry. A cron job that sends compliments.
Subtract: How much can you remove from a codebase before it breaks? Strip a tool to its minimum viable function. Delete until only the essence remains.
High concept, low effort: A deep idea, lazily executed. The concept should be brilliant. The implementation should take an afternoon. If it takes longer, you're overthinking it.
For Makers & Artists
Blatantly copy something: Pick something you admire — a tool, an artwork, an interface. Recreate it from scratch. The learning is in the gap between your version and theirs.
One million of something: One million is both a lot and not that much. One million pixels is a 1MB photo. One million API calls is a Tuesday. One million of anything becomes interesting at scale.
Make something that dies: A website that loses a feature every day. A chatbot that forgets. A countdown to nothing. An exercise in rot, killing, or letting go.
Do a lot of math: Generative geometry, shader golf, mathematical art, computational origami. Time to re-learn what an arcsin is.
For Anyone
Text is the universal interface: Build something where text is the only interface. No buttons, no graphics, just words in and words out. Text can go in and out of almost anything.
Start at the punchline: Think of something that would be a funny sentence. Work backwards to make it real. "I taught my thermostat to gaslight me" → now build it.
Hostile UI: Make something intentionally painful to use. A password field that requires 47 conditions. A form where every label lies. A CLI that judges your commands.
Take two: Remember an old project. Do it again from scratch. No looking at the original. See what changed about how you think.
See references/full-prompt-library.md for 30+ additional constraints across communication, scale, philosophy, transformation, and more.
Matching Constraints to Users
| User says | Pick from |
|---|---|
| "I want to build something" (no direction) | Random — any constraint |
| "I'm learning [language]" | Blatantly copy something, Automate the annoying thing |
| "I want something weird" | Hostile UI, Frankenstein week, Start at the punchline |
| "I want something useful" | Solve your own itch, The CLI that should exist, Automate the annoying thing |
| "I want something beautiful" | Do a lot of math, One million of something |
| "I'm burned out" | High concept low effort, Make something that dies |
| "Weekend project" | Nothing new except glue, Start at the punchline |
| "I want a challenge" | One million of something, Subtract, Take two |
Output Format
## Constraint: [Name]
> [The constraint, one sentence]
### Ideas
1. **[One-line pitch]**
[2-3 sentences: what you'd build and why it's interesting]
⏱ [weekend / week / month] • 🔧 [stack]
2. **[One-line pitch]**
[2-3 sentences]
⏱ ... • 🔧 ...
3. **[One-line pitch]**
[2-3 sentences]
⏱ ... • 🔧 ...
Example
## Constraint: The CLI tool that should exist
> Think of a command you've wished you could type. Now build it.
### Ideas
1. **`git whatsup` — show what happened while you were away**
Compares your last active commit to HEAD and summarizes what changed,
who committed, and what PRs merged. Like a morning standup from your repo.
⏱ weekend • 🔧 Python, GitPython, click
2. **`explain 503` — HTTP status codes for humans**
Pipe any status code or error message and get a plain-English explanation
with common causes and fixes. Pulls from a curated database, not an LLM.
⏱ weekend • 🔧 Rust or Go, static dataset
3. **`deps why <package>` — why is this in my dependency tree**
Traces a transitive dependency back to the direct dependency that pulled
it in. Answers "why do I have 47 copies of lodash" in one command.
⏱ weekend • 🔧 Node.js, npm/yarn lockfile parsing
After the user picks one, start building — create the project, write the code, iterate.
Attribution
Constraint approach inspired by wttdotm.com/prompts.html. Adapted and expanded for software development and general-purpose ideation.