Guide · Agent skill
How to use the Boost Prompt agent skill (boost-prompt)
Updated · written with AI from the project's own documentation and checked against our catalogue data
The boost-prompt skill is a set of instructions that tells an AI agent to act as a prompt editor. Instead of acting on your first rough request, the agent asks you focused questions about scope, deliverables, constraints and success criteria, then produces a clean markdown prompt you can reuse. This guide explains what the skill does, how to install it, how to trigger it, and what it needs, so you can get a clearer brief before any code is written.
Boost Promptgithub/awesome-copilot · MIT Download the skill Quick start
- 1Download the skill. Download the boost-prompt ZIP from this page. It contains SKILL.md.
- 2Unzip into the skills folder. Extract the folder into ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use, or into .claude/skills/ in a project.
- 3Or upload it in the apps. In the Claude apps, go to Settings → Capabilities → Skills and upload the skill instead.
- 4Install Joyride. Install the Joyride extension in VS Code, which the clipboard and question tools depend on.
- 5Describe your task. Ask the agent in plain language to refine or structure your prompt before it starts work.
- 6Answer the questions. Respond to the agent's questions about scope, deliverables, constraints and success criteria.
- 7Use the clipboard prompt. Paste the copied markdown into your next task, and request changes in chat if needed.
What is an agent skill, and what does boost-prompt make the agent do?
An agent skill is a folder containing a SKILL.md file with instructions that an AI agent loads when it is relevant to your request. The boost-prompt skill changes the agent's job from answering or building to refining your request.
When the skill is active, the agent interviews you about the task, can explore your project to understand context, and then writes an organised markdown prompt. It is designed to improve prompts, not to write code: the skill's instructions state explicitly 'DO NOT WRITE ANY CODE.'
- Asks specific questions using the joyride_request_human_input tool whenever details are unclear
- Looks through the project with available tools to understand the task
- Defines expected deliverables and success criteria
- Clarifies technical and procedural requirements
- Organises the result into clear sections or steps
- Copies the final markdown to the system clipboard and types it out in the chat
Install the boost-prompt skill
Download the ZIP for the boost-prompt skill from this page. The skill is distributed as a folder containing SKILL.md. You can install it in one of two ways.
Option A: place it in your personal skills folder or in a project. Unzip the download into ~/.claude/skills/ to make it available everywhere, or into a project's .claude/skills/ folder to share it with that project only.
Option B: upload it in the Claude apps under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.
- Personal install: ~/.claude/skills/
- Project install: .claude/skills/ inside your project
- App install: Settings → Capabilities → Skills
Install the Joyride extension in VS Code
The skill depends on the Joyride extension. Its clipboard step runs through Joyride, and the skill's question tool is also provided by it. Without Joyride, the clipboard step will not work, so install it in VS Code before using this skill.
How do you trigger the boost-prompt skill with natural requests?
You do not need a special command. Describe the task in plain language and ask the agent to help you write or improve the prompt. The skill's description covers refining prompts, so requests that ask for a clearer brief, a structured prompt, or help defining scope are the most likely to load it.
Be honest about how rough your request is. The more vague the starting point, the more questions you can expect.
- Help me turn this rough idea into a clear prompt before you start.
- I keep giving vague requests. Can you interview me and write a structured prompt I can reuse?
- Refine this task description and put the final version on my clipboard.
- Ask me what you need to know about scope and deliverables before we begin.
What happens during a session?
The session is iterative. The agent asks questions, may look at your project, and then produces the prompt. It places the markdown on the clipboard using Joyride and shows the same text in the chat, then announces that the prompt is ready and asks whether you want changes or additions.
Each time you request a revision, the agent repeats the copy, chat and ask cycle, so the clipboard always holds the latest version.
- Expect several rounds of questions before the prompt appears
- Review the chat copy and request edits if anything is missing
- Paste the clipboard contents into a new task for the agent that will do the work
What does the skill need, and is it safe to run?
The skill needs VS Code and the Joyride extension. According to the skill's own description, it runs no scripts and uses no network. Its only files are SKILL.md. Because it is instruction-only, it does not execute programs on your machine, but its clipboard step does write to your system clipboard via Joyride.
Read the SKILL.md file before installing any skill from a third party, and confirm that you are comfortable with it writing to your clipboard.
- Requires: VS Code and the Joyride extension
- Runs scripts: no
- Uses network: no
- Writes to: the system clipboard (through Joyride)
- Licence: MIT
Tips for getting a better prompt
Answer the agent's questions in specific terms. Naming files, expected outputs and success checks gives the agent more to work with than general statements. If you do not know an answer, say so and let the agent propose options.
Save the final markdown once you are satisfied. A reusable prompt is most valuable when you use it again for similar tasks.
- Name the files, folders or features involved
- State what done looks like, such as tests passing or a page loading
- List any constraints such as libraries to avoid or deadlines
- Ask for changes to a section rather than restarting the whole session
What people use it for
- Turning a one-line feature idea into a scoped brief with deliverables and checks
- Standardising how a team writes task descriptions for agents
- Building a reusable prompt template for recurring kinds of work
- Clarifying constraints, such as which libraries or files to leave alone, before an agent starts coding
Frequently asked questions
Is the boost-prompt skill free?
The skill is published under the MIT licence, as stated on this page. Check the licence file in the source repository for the full terms. Joyride is a separate VS Code extension, and its own terms apply.
What do I need to use boost-prompt?
You need VS Code and the Joyride extension. The skill's clipboard and question tools depend on Joyride, so it will not work without it. It runs no scripts and uses no network.
Where do I install the boost-prompt skill?
Unzip it into ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use, or into .claude/skills/ inside a project. In the Claude apps you can instead upload it under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.
Does boost-prompt write code for me?
No. The skill explicitly forbids writing code. It produces an improved markdown prompt that you can then give to an agent or developer to do the building.
Why is my clipboard not updating?
The clipboard step runs through the Joyride extension. Confirm Joyride is installed and active in VS Code. Without it, the prompt will not be copied, though it should still appear in the chat.
Is boost-prompt better than just writing a longer prompt myself?
It is useful if you tend to leave out scope, deliverables or constraints, because the agent asks for them. For a quick one-line question it adds unnecessary rounds of questions, so writing the prompt yourself is faster.
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Our verdict
Use boost-prompt if you work in VS Code, want a clearer brief before an agent builds something, or need a structured prompt your team can reuse. Pick something else if you do not use VS Code, want code written immediately, or only need a quick one-line answer.
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