Plannotator Visual Explainer

Three paths depending on content type. Each has its own references and structure.

Route by content type

Implementation plan, design doc, or proposal → Follow the Plan path. Read references/design-system.md and references/svg-patterns.md. Prescriptive structure.

PR explainer, diff review, or code change walkthrough → Follow the PR path. Read references/design-system.md and references/pr-components.md. Prescriptive structure.

Everything else (architecture diagrams, data tables, slide decks, project recaps, general visual explanations) → Follow the Visual explainer path. Delegates to nicobailon/visual-explainer with Plannotator theme tokens.

Delivery

Always deliver via Plannotator's annotation UI. Do NOT use open or xdg-open.

For any deliverable that uses Mermaid, render every diagram with Mermaid 12 in both the light and dark palettes before opening the annotation UI. Rendering is a hard gate: an exception, empty SVG, or error output such as aria-roledescription="error" or Syntax error in text means the explainer is not deliverable. Fix the diagram or theme configuration and rerun both palettes until every SVG passes.

For zoomable diagram shells, additionally zoom to the maximum and pan to all extremes in both palettes before delivering: the figure caption must stay fully legible throughout (see references/diagram-shell.md).

Plans/proposals (user should approve/deny):

plannotator annotate <file> --gate

Everything else (informational):

plannotator annotate <file>

Plan path

For implementation plans, design docs, feature specs, migration guides, and proposals.

Before generating, read:

1. references/design-system.md — Plannotator theme tokens, typography, component patterns
2. references/svg-patterns.md — inline SVG building blocks for architecture diagrams, flowcharts, data flow

Document structure (in order, pick what fits):

1. Header — eyebrow label (mono, uppercase), title (serif, large), prompt box (the original brief)
2. Summary strip — 3-5 stat cards showing key numbers at a glance (components, endpoints, tables, etc.)
3. Milestones / timeline — vertical timeline showing phases without time estimates. Phases show sequence and dependencies, not duration.
4. Architecture / data flow — inline SVG diagram. Use for 3+ interacting components. Highlighted boxes for new components, dashed arrows for async paths.
5. Mockups — build UI mockups in HTML/CSS directly, not as descriptions
6. Key code — dark-theme code blocks with syntax highlighting. Only architecturally significant interfaces/schemas — not every function.
7. Risks & mitigations — table with severity badges (HIGH/MED/LOW)
8. Open questions — callout cards with decision owner ("Decide with: backend team")

Not every plan needs every section. Skip what doesn't serve the content. Never include time estimates, boilerplate sections, or exhaustive file lists.

Adapt to the task: Backend → lead with data flow. Frontend → lead with mockups. Refactoring → lead with before/after diagrams. Infrastructure → lead with architecture.

Quality bar: The plan answers "what, why, and how" within 30 seconds of reading. Whitespace is a feature — one idea per viewport.

PR path

For PR walkthroughs, diff reviews, code change explainers, and reviewer guides.

Before generating, read:

1. references/design-system.md — Plannotator theme tokens, typography, component patterns
2. references/pr-components.md — diff rendering, review comment bubbles, risk chips, file cards, before/after panels

Document structure (in order, pick what fits):

1. Header — PR title, meta strip (file count, +/- lines, branch, author)
2. TL;DR — bordered card with primary accent left border. 2-3 sentences. Readers who see nothing else should get the gist.
3. Why — motivation and before/after comparison (two-column grid)
4. File tour — collapsible cards per file. Each has: file path + badge (NEW/MOD/DEL) + line stats, a "why" paragraph, and important diff hunks. High-risk files expanded, safe files collapsed.
5. Risk map — visual chips showing which files need careful review vs. which are mechanical. Three tiers: attention (destructive), medium (warning), safe (success).
6. Where to focus — numbered callout cards. Each names a file/function and describes the concern.
7. Test plan — checkbox-style verification checklist
8. Rollout (if applicable) — phased deployment with feature flags

Use Pierre diffs via CDN for syntax-highlighted inline diffs — see references/pr-components.md for the pattern.

Visual explainer path

For architecture diagrams, data tables, slide decks, project recaps, comparisons, and any other visual explanation.

Before generating:

1. Ensure visual-explainer is installed:
   • Check: ~/.claude/skills/visual-explainer/SKILL.md or ~/.agents/skills/visual-explainer/SKILL.md
   • If not found: do not install it on your own. Stop and ask the person whether to install it, showing the exact command: npx skills add nicobailon/visual-explainer -g --yes Run it only after they agree (their yes is the consent; without --yes the installer waits for input your shell can't give). They can also run the command themselves if they prefer. If they decline, say this path needs visual-explainer and stop. The Plan and PR paths do not need it and work without it.
2. Read visual-explainer's SKILL.md (workflow, diagram types, anti-slop rules)
3. Read the relevant visual-explainer references and templates for your content type
4. Read references/theme-override.md — Plannotator tokens replacing Nico's palettes
5. For zoomable Mermaid diagrams with controls and a caption: read references/diagram-shell.md and copy its shell — do not hand-roll viewport, canvas, or caption markup

Follow visual-explainer's structure, component classes (.ve-card, .kpi-card, .pipeline), and anti-slop rules. Overrides are the color/typography layer — Plannotator tokens instead of Nico's custom palettes — plus the zoomable diagram shell in references/diagram-shell.md when the deliverable has one.

Design philosophy (all paths)

• Whitespace is a feature. Generous padding, large section gaps. If cramped, add space — don't shrink text.
• One idea per viewport. Hero section, then diagram, then detail grid — not all crammed together.
• Show, don't describe. A timeline shows sequencing. A diagram shows relationships. A code block shows the interface.
• No time estimates. Timelines show phases and dependencies. Never attach hour/day estimates.