ponytail-help
Quick reference for ponytail levels, skills and commands. One-shot display. Use for /ponytail-help, "ponytail help", "how do I use ponytail".
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Install
Works with every agent the skills CLI supports.
npx skills add https://github.com/dietrichgebert/ponytail --skill ponytail-help- 01
Install
Run the command in your project. The CLI asks which agents to install for.
- 02
Describe the task
Ask your agent for something this skill covers. It loads ponytail-help automatically when relevant.
- 03
Review the result
The agent follows the SKILL.md steps, scripts and references bundled with the skill.
Security audits
Independent scans of the skill's instructions and bundled files.
SKILL.md
The instructions your agent reads when the skill is triggered.
Ponytail Help
Display this reference card when invoked. One-shot, do NOT change mode, write flag files, or persist anything.
Levels
| Level | Trigger | What change |
|---|---|---|
| Lite | /ponytail lite | Build what was asked, name the smaller option in one line. |
| Full | /ponytail | The smallest complete change, a check where the logic needs one, and a reply that names what was skipped and any risk. Default. |
| Ultra | /ponytail ultra | Also questions the request and pushes back before building. |
Level sticks until changed or session end.
Skills
| Skill | Trigger | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| ponytail | /ponytail | Lazy mode itself: least new code, clear replies that name skipped work and risks. |
| ponytail-review | /ponytail-review | Quality review of a diff: bugs, security, load, missing tests, speed, what to cut. Each finding says what goes wrong and how to fix it. |
| ponytail-audit | /ponytail-audit | The same quality review for the whole repo, ranked. |
| ponytail-debt | /ponytail-debt | Harvest shortcut: comments into a tracked ledger. |
| ponytail-gain | /ponytail-gain | Measured-impact scoreboard: less code, less cost, more speed. |
| ponytail-help | /ponytail-help | This card. |
In Codex CLI and the IDE extension, invoke skills with $ponytail:ponytail,
$ponytail:ponytail-review, or $ponytail:ponytail-help. Claude Code and OpenCode use the
slash-command forms above (OpenCode ships all six as slash commands).
Deactivate
Say "stop ponytail" or "normal mode". Resume anytime with /ponytail.
/ponytail off also works.
Band (Claude Code)
/ponytail band hides the band above the prompt, the same command brings it back.
/ponytail band on and /ponytail band off set it directly. The level stays.
/ponytail band import adds your past Claude Code sessions (cost, agent time, tokens) to the board.
Configure Default Mode
Default mode = full, auto-active every session. Change it:
Environment variable (highest priority):
export PONYTAIL_DEFAULT_MODE=ultra
Config file (~/.config/ponytail/config.json, Windows: %APPDATA%\ponytail\config.json):
{ "defaultMode": "lite" }
Set "off" to disable auto-activation on session start, activate manually
with /ponytail when wanted.
Resolution: env var > config file > full.
Update
Enable auto-update once: open /plugin, go to Marketplaces, pick ponytail, Enable auto-update. Claude Code then pulls new versions at startup (run /reload-plugins when it prompts). Manual refresh: /plugin marketplace update ponytail then /reload-plugins.
If /plugin is not recognized, your Claude Code is out of date. Update it (npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code@latest, or brew upgrade claude-code) and restart. Other hosts use their own update flow.
More
Full docs + examples: https://github.com/DietrichGebert/ponytail
FAQ
What does the ponytail-help skill do?
Quick reference for ponytail levels, skills and commands. One-shot display. Use for /ponytail-help, "ponytail help", "how do I use ponytail".
How do I install ponytail-help?
Run npx skills add https://github.com/dietrichgebert/ponytail --skill ponytail-help in your project. The skills CLI detects the agents you use and copies the skill into the right folder. For Claude Code you can also place the skill folder at ~/.claude/skills/ponytail-help/ (personal) or .claude/skills/ponytail-help/ (project).
Which AI agents can use ponytail-help?
Any agent that supports the open Agent Skills format (a folder with a SKILL.md file), including Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, Windsurf, Cline, OpenCode and more.
Is ponytail-help safe to install?
Security partners have reviewed it: Gen Agent Trust Hub passed; Socket passed; Snyk passed. As with any skill, read the SKILL.md and bundled scripts before installing.
Who maintains ponytail-help?
It is published by dietrichgebert in dietrichgebert/ponytail. It has 43,832 recorded installs.
More from dietrichgebert/ponytail
ponytail
dietrichgebert/ponytail
Lazy senior dev mode: the smallest change that fully solves the task, and a reply a busy human understands in one read. Use on any coding task (writing, fixing, refactoring, reviewing, choosing dependencies) and when the user says "ponytail", "be lazy", "simplest solution", "yagni", or complains about over-engineering or bloat. Levels: lite, full (default), ultra.
ponytail-review
dietrichgebert/ponytail
Quality review of a change: is the logic right, is it safe, does it hold under real load, is risky code tested, is it fast enough, and is every line needed. Reads the connected code, not only the diff. Each finding is explained in plain English. Use for "review this", "code review", "review the last commit", "review my PR", "is this over-engineered", /ponytail-review.
ponytail-audit
dietrichgebert/ponytail
Quality audit of a whole repo: bugs, security holes, what breaks under real load, risky code without tests, slow paths, and what to delete, merge or split. Ranked, each finding explained in plain English. One-shot report, changes nothing. Use for "audit this codebase", "review the whole repo", "find bloat", "what can I delete", /ponytail-audit.
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dietrichgebert/ponytail
List every shortcut: comment (and older ponytail: ones) as a debt ledger. One-shot report, changes nothing. Use for "ponytail debt", "what did ponytail defer", "list the shortcuts", /ponytail-debt.
ponytail-gain
dietrichgebert/ponytail
Show ponytail's measured savings (code, cost, speed) from the benchmark. One-shot display. Use for /ponytail-gain, "what does ponytail save", "ponytail impact".
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