docs/factory.md
Using planning-with-files with FactoryAI Droid.
FactoryAI Droid auto-discovers skills from .factory/skills/ directories. Two installation methods:
Share the skill with your entire team by adding it to your repository:
# In your project repository
git clone https://github.com/OthmanAdi/planning-with-files.git /tmp/planning-with-files
# Copy the Factory skill to your repo
cp -r /tmp/planning-with-files/.factory .
# Commit to share with team
git add .factory/
git commit -m "Add planning-with-files skill for Factory Droid"
git push
# Clean up
rm -rf /tmp/planning-with-files
Now everyone on your team using Factory Droid will have access to the skill!
Install just for yourself:
# Clone the repo
git clone https://github.com/OthmanAdi/planning-with-files.git /tmp/planning-with-files
# Copy to your personal Factory skills folder
mkdir -p ~/.factory/skills
cp -r /tmp/planning-with-files/.factory/skills/planning-with-files ~/.factory/skills/
# Clean up
rm -rf /tmp/planning-with-files
Restart your Factory Droid session, then the skill will auto-activate when you work on complex tasks.
No slash command needed - Factory Droid automatically invokes skills based on your task description!
Factory Droid scans your task and automatically activates the skill when you:
Increase auto-activation likelihood by using these phrases:
I need to build a REST API with authentication,
database integration, and comprehensive testing.
This is a complex multi-step project that will
require careful planning.
Factory Droid will automatically invoke planning-with-files and create the three planning files.
Once activated, the skill creates:
| File | Purpose | Location |
|---|---|---|
task_plan.md | Phases, progress, decisions | Your project root |
findings.md | Research, discoveries | Your project root |
progress.md | Session log, test results | Your project root |
The skill includes starter templates in .factory/skills/planning-with-files/templates/:
task_plan.md — Phase tracking templatefindings.md — Research storage templateprogress.md — Session logging templateDescribe your task with complexity indicators:
I'm building a user authentication system.
This is a multi-phase project requiring database
setup, API endpoints, testing, and documentation.
Factory Droid invokes planning-with-files and creates the planning files.
The AI will:
task_plan.md with phasesfindings.mdprogress.mdAll important information gets written to disk, not lost in context window.
Factory Droid supports hooks — lifecycle events that run shell commands automatically. The SKILL.md includes hooks that:
| Hook Event | What It Does |
|---|---|
| UserPromptSubmit | Detects active plan and reminds to read planning files |
| PreToolUse | Reads first 30 lines of task_plan.md before Write/Edit/Bash/Read operations |
| PostToolUse | Reminds to update progress.md after file changes |
| Stop | Runs check-complete.sh to verify all phases are done before stopping |
These hooks work automatically — no configuration needed beyond copying the .factory/ directory.
When errors occur, the AI:
After every 2 search/view operations, findings are saved to findings.md.
Prevents losing visual/multimodal information.
Before major decisions, the AI re-reads planning files to refresh goals.
Prevents goal drift in long sessions.
With workspace installation (.factory/skills/):
With personal installation (~/.factory/skills/):
This pattern is why Manus AI (acquired by Meta for $2 billion) succeeded:
"Markdown is my 'working memory' on disk. Since I process information iteratively and my active context has limits, Markdown files serve as scratch pads for notes, checkpoints for progress, building blocks for final deliverables." — Manus AI
Key insight: Context window = RAM (volatile). Filesystem = Disk (persistent).
Write important information to disk, not context.
Check:
Templates are in:
.factory/skills/planning-with-files/templates/~/.factory/skills/planning-with-files/templates/Copy them to your project root and customize.
Edit .factory/skills/planning-with-files/SKILL.md to customize:
Place custom templates in:
.factory/skills/planning-with-files/templates/
Factory Droid will reference them automatically.