Design Document Generator

Create an engineering design document based on the current conversation context, following the team's standard template from Google Drive.

Prerequisites

Requires Google Drive OAuth setup. See

claude/skills/SETUP.md

for instructions.

When to Use

Use this skill when the user:

• Asks to create a design doc
• Wants to document a technical decision or architecture
• Needs to write up a feature proposal
• Says

  /design-doc

Workflow

1. Find the Template in Google Drive

Search for the engineering design doc template:

ACCESS_TOKEN=$(google-oauth-token)

curl -s -G "https://www.googleapis.com/drive/v3/files" \
  --data-urlencode "q=name contains 'engineering design doc template'" \
  --data-urlencode "fields=files(id,name,mimeType,webViewLink)" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ${ACCESS_TOKEN}"

If multiple results, pick the one that's a Google Doc (

mimeType = 'application/vnd.google-apps.document'

).

2. Read the Template

Export the template as plain text to understand its structure:

DOC_ID="<template-doc-id>"
curl -s "https://www.googleapis.com/drive/v3/files/${DOC_ID}/export?mimeType=text/plain" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer ${ACCESS_TOKEN}"

3. Analyze the Template

The template will contain:

• Section headings (e.g., Summary, Background, Goals, Non-Goals, Design, Alternatives, etc.)
• Instructions or placeholders for what to include in each section
• Formatting guidance

Extract the structure and understand what each section should contain.

4. Generate the Design Document

Using the conversation history as context, create a design document that:

• Follows the exact section structure from the template
• Fills in each section with relevant content from the conversation
• Uses appropriate technical detail for each section
• Maintains a professional, clear writing style

If the conversation doesn't contain enough information for certain sections:

• Mark them with

  [TODO: <what's needed>]

• Or ask the user for the missing information before generating

5. Determine the Filename

Ask the user what to name the file, or derive it from the document title/summary:

• Use kebab-case:

  feature-name-design.md

• Default location: current working directory

6. Write the Document

Write the generated design doc as a markdown file:

# Example - the actual content will be generated based on conversation
cat > ./my-feature-design.md << 'EOF'
# Design Document: My Feature

## Summary
...

## Background
...

[rest of sections from template]
EOF

7. Report to User

After writing the file:

• Tell the user the file path
• Mention any

  [TODO]

  sections that need to be filled in
• Remind them how to paste into Google Docs with formatting:

Pasting into Google Docs:

Standard pasting (Ctrl+V or Cmd+V) will only paste plain text. To convert the Markdown into formatted Google Docs content:

1. Copy the Markdown content to your clipboard from the file
2. In your Google Docs document, right-click where you want to paste
3. From the context menu, select "Paste from Markdown"

The Markdown will be converted to rich text (headings, bold text, lists, tables) and inserted with the correct formatting.

Example Output

# Design Document: User Authentication Refactor

## Summary
Refactor the authentication system to use JWT tokens instead of session cookies...

## Background
The current session-based auth has scaling issues because...

## Goals
- Support horizontal scaling without sticky sessions
- Reduce auth latency by 50%
- Maintain backwards compatibility during migration

## Non-Goals
- Changing the user-facing login flow
- Adding new auth methods (OAuth, SSO)

## Design
### Architecture
...

### API Changes
...

## Alternatives Considered
### Keep session-based auth with Redis
Rejected because...

## Security Considerations
...

## Timeline
...

Notes

• The template structure may vary - always read the actual template first
• Keep the generated doc concise but complete
• If the conversation was exploratory, focus on the decisions that were made
• Include relevant code snippets or diagrams if discussed in the conversation