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Iterative Depth Explorer

Re-examines a problem through 2-8 different analytical lenses to surface hidden requirements and edge cases.

Source Download skill
Repository
danielmiessler/LifeOS
Stars
19,682
Licence
MIT
Files
4 files

What it does

Once installed, when you ask the agent to look deeper at a problem or check for blind spots, it works through the same problem several times, each time from a different angle such as the literal request, a stakeholder's view, how it could fail, or how it changes over time. Each pass is meant to surface requirements and edge cases that a single look would miss, and the agent merges the results into a list of testable criteria and anti-criteria. The method is described as drawing on 20 established techniques from cognitive science, requirements engineering and design thinking.

Great for

  • Developers or product owners who want a second look at a design or feature before building it
  • People who suspect they are missing edge cases and want a structured blind-spot check
  • Anyone who wants a multi-angle analysis of a decision with the reasoning for each angle shown

Skip it if

  • Simple, well-defined questions where extra passes add cost without new insight
  • Scope or zoom analysis of a problem, which the skill description says belongs to the separate ApertureOscillation skill
  • Situations needing verified facts: the lenses are analytical prompts, not a source of evidence, so outputs need human review

Try asking

  • “What am I missing in this authentication design? Run a blind spot check.”
  • “Explore deeper: 3 quick passes over the private vs public issue routing options.”
  • “Give me a multi-angle analysis of this data retention policy, including failure cases.”
Step-by-step guide: how to use Iterative Depth ExplorerInstall, first run, examples, tips and FAQs

Install in 3 steps

  1. 1

    Download the skill

    The ZIP contains the 4 original files, the MIT licence and an attribution note.

    IterativeDepth.zip
  2. 2

    Add it to your agent

    Claude Code (all projects)

    mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills && unzip IterativeDepth.zip -d ~/.claude/skills/

    Claude Code / Agent SDK (this project only)

    mkdir -p .claude/skills && unzip IterativeDepth.zip -d .claude/skills/

    Claude apps (web/desktop): Settings → Capabilities → Skills → Upload skill, and choose the ZIP.

  3. 3

    Ask for the task

    No special command needed — the agent reads the skill's description and loads it when your request matches. Try one of the prompts above.

Get better results

  • Name the problem and the goal clearly; the lenses work best on a concrete, specific problem.
  • Ask for a number of passes (for example 3 quick passes) if you want to control cost; the skill can run up to eight.
  • Review the criteria yourself, since the skill's own evaluation notes say usefulness depends on whether the lenses reveal real requirements.

What's inside

  • Intents/Explore.md
  • ScientificFoundation.md
  • SKILL.md
  • TheLenses.md

Redistributed unmodified from danielmiessler/LifeOS under the MIT licence. The assessment was drafted with AI from the skill's files on 2026-10-29. Skills can instruct your agent to run code — read SKILL.md and any scripts before installing.