agent-skill-creator/references/activation-patterns-guide.md

Activation Patterns Guide

Version: 1.0 Purpose: Library of proven regex patterns for skill activation

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Overview

This guide provides reusable regex patterns for Layer 2 (Patterns) of the 3-Layer Activation System. All patterns are tested and production-ready.

Pattern Structure

(?i)                          → Case insensitive flag
(verb|synonyms)               → Action verb group
\s+                           → Required whitespace
(optional\s+)?                → Optional modifiers
(entity|object)               → Target entity
\s+(connector)                → Context connector

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📚 Pattern Library by Category

1. Creation Patterns

Pattern 1.1: Agent/Skill Creation

(?i)(create|build|develop|make|generate|design)\s+(an?\s+)?(agent|skill|workflow)\s+(for|to|that)

Matches:

• "create an agent for"
• "build a skill to"
• "develop agent that"
• "make a workflow for"
• "generate skill to"

Use For: Skills that create agents, automation, or workflows

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Pattern 1.2: Custom Solution Creation

(?i)(create|build)\s+a?\s+custom\s+(solution|tool|automation|system)\s+(for|to)

Matches:

• "create a custom solution for"
• "build custom tool to"
• "create custom automation for"

Use For: Custom development skills

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2. Automation Patterns

Pattern 2.1: Direct Automation Request

(?i)(automate|automation|streamline)\s+(this\s+)?(workflow|process|task|job|repetitive)

Matches:

• "automate this workflow"
• "automation process"
• "streamline task"
• "automate repetitive job"

Use For: Workflow automation skills

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Pattern 2.2: Repetitive Task Pattern

(?i)(every day|daily|repeatedly|constantly|regularly)\s+(I|we)\s+(have to|need to|do|must)

Matches:

• "every day I have to"
• "daily we need to"
• "repeatedly I do"
• "regularly we must"

Use For: Repetitive workflow detection

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Pattern 2.3: Need Automation

(?i)need\s+to\s+automate\s+.*

Matches:

• "need to automate this process"
• "need to automate data entry"
• "need to automate reporting"
• "need to automate this codebase"

Use For: Explicit automation needs

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3. Transformation Patterns

Pattern 3.1: Convert/Transform

(?i)(turn|convert|transform|change)\s+(this\s+)?(process|workflow|task|data)\s+into\s+(an?\s+)?(agent|automation|system)

Matches:

• "turn this process into an agent"
• "turn this codebase into an agent"
• "convert workflow to automation"
• "convert workflow in this repo/codebase into automation"
• "transform task into system"
• "transform this codebase tasks into system"

Use For: Process transformation skills

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Pattern 3.2: From X to Y

(?i)(from|convert)\s+([A-Za-z]+)\s+(to|into)\s+([A-Za-z]+)

Matches:

• "from PDF to text"
• "convert CSV to JSON"
• "from article to code"
• "from repository to code"
• "from codebasee to code"
• "from github repo to code"

Use For: Format conversion, data transformation

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4. Analysis Patterns

Pattern 4.1: General Analysis

(?i)(analyze|analysis|examine|study)\s+.*\s+(data|information|metrics|performance|results)

Matches:

• "analyze sales data"
• "analysis of performance metrics"
• "examine customer information"

Use For: Data analysis skills

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Pattern 4.2: Domain-Specific Analysis

(?i)(analyze|analysis|monitor|track)\s+.*\s+(stock|crop|customer|user|product)s?

Matches:

• "analyze stock performance"
• "monitor crop conditions"
• "track customer behavior"
• "track prices"
• "monitor weather"

Use For: Domain-specific analytics

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Pattern 4.3: Technical Analysis

(?i)(technical|chart)\s+(analysis|indicators?)\s+(for|of|on)

Matches:

• "technical analysis for AAPL"
• "chart indicators of SPY"
• "technical analysis on stocks"

Use For: Financial/technical analysis skills

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5. Comparison Patterns

Pattern 5.1: Direct Comparison

(?i)(compare|comparison)\s+.*\s+(vs|versus|against|with|to)

Matches:

• "compare AAPL vs MSFT"
• "comparison of stocks against benchmark"
• "compare performance with last year"

Use For: Comparison and benchmarking skills

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Pattern 5.2: Year-over-Year

(?i)(this year|this week|this month|this quarter|today|current)\s+(vs|versus|against|compared to)\s+(last year|last week|last month|last quarter|last day|previous|prior)

Matches:

• "this year vs last year"
• "current versus previous year"
• "this year compared to prior year"
• "this week vs last week"
• "current versus previous week"
• "this quarter compared to prior quarter"

Use For: Temporal comparison skills

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6. Ranking & Sorting Patterns

Pattern 6.1: Top N Pattern

(?i)(top|best|leading|biggest|highest)\s+(\d+)?\s*(states|countries|stocks|products|customers)?

Matches:

• "top 10 states"
• "best performing stocks"
• "leading products"
• "biggest countries"

Use For: Ranking and leaderboard skills

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Pattern 6.2: Ranking Request

(?i)(rank|ranking|sort|list)\s+.*\s+(by|based on)\s+(.*?)

Matches:

• "rank states by production"
• "ranking based on performance"
• "sort stocks by volatility"

Use For: Sorting and organization skills

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7. Extraction Patterns

Pattern 7.1: Extract From Source

(?i)(extract|parse|get|retrieve)\s+.*\s+(from)\s+(pdf|article|web|url|file|document|page)

Matches:

• "extract text from PDF"
• "parse data from article"
• "get information from web page"

Use For: Data extraction skills

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Pattern 7.2: Implementation From Source

(?i)(implement|build|create|generate)\s+(.*?)\s+(from)\s+(article|paper|documentation|tutorial)

Matches:

• "implement algorithm from paper"
• "create code from tutorial"
• "generate prototype from article"

Use For: Code generation from documentation

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8. Reporting Patterns

Pattern 8.1: Generate Report

(?i)(generate|create|produce|build)\s+(an?\s+)?(report|dashboard|summary|overview)\s+(for|about|on)

Matches:

• "generate a report for sales"
• "create dashboard about performance"
• "produce summary on metrics"

Use For: Reporting and visualization skills

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Pattern 8.2: Report Request

(?i)(show|give|provide)\s+me\s+(an?\s+)?(report|summary|overview|dashboard)

Matches:

• "show me a report"
• "give me summary"
• "provide overview"

Use For: Data presentation skills

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9. Monitoring Patterns

Pattern 9.1: Monitor/Track

(?i)(monitor|track|watch|observe)\s+.*\s+(for|about)\s+(changes|updates|alerts|notifications)

Matches:

• "monitor stocks for changes"
• "track repositories for updates"
• "watch prices for alerts"

Use For: Monitoring and alerting skills

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Pattern 9.2: Notification Request

(?i)(notify|alert|inform)\s+me\s+(when|if|about)

Matches:

• "notify me when price drops"
• "alert me if error occurs"
• "inform me about changes"

Use For: Notification systems

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10. Search & Query Patterns

Pattern 10.1: What/How Questions

(?i)(what|how|which|where)\s+(is|are|was|were)\s+.*\s+(of|for|in)

Matches:

• "what is production of corn"
• "how are conditions for soybeans"
• "which stocks are best"

Use For: Query and search skills

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Pattern 10.2: Data Request

(?i)(show|get|fetch|retrieve|find)\s+.*\s+(data|information|stats|metrics)

Matches:

• "show me crop data"
• "get stock information"
• "fetch performance metrics"

Use For: Data retrieval skills

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🎯 Pattern Combinations

Combo 1: Analysis + Domain

(?i)(analyze|analysis)\s+.*\s+(stock|crop|customer|product)s?\s+(using|with|via)

Example: "analyze stocks using RSI"

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Combo 2: Extract + Implement

(?i)(extract|parse)\s+.*\s+and\s+(implement|build|create)

Example: "extract algorithm and implement in Python"

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Combo 3: Monitor + Report

(?i)(monitor|track)\s+.*\s+and\s+(generate|create|send)\s+(report|alert)

Example: "monitor prices and generate alerts"

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🚫 Anti-Patterns (Avoid These)

Anti-Pattern 1: Too Broad

❌ (?i)(data)
❌ (?i)(analysis)
❌ (?i)(create)

Problem: Matches everything, high false positive rate

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Anti-Pattern 2: No Action Verb

❌ (?i)(stock|stocks?)
❌ (?i)(pdf|document)

Problem: Passive, no user intent

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Anti-Pattern 3: Overly Specific

❌ (?i)analyze AAPL stock using RSI indicator

Problem: Too narrow, misses variations

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✅ Pattern Quality Checklist

For each pattern, verify:

• Includes action verb(s)
• Includes target entity/object
• Case insensitive ((?i))
• Flexible (captures variations)
• Not too broad (false positives)
• Not too narrow (false negatives)
• Tested with 5+ example queries
• Documented with match examples

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🧪 Pattern Testing Template

### Pattern: {pattern-name}

**Regex:**
```regex
{regex-pattern}

Should Match: ✅ "{example-1}" ✅ "{example-2}" ✅ "{example-3}"

Should NOT Match: ❌ "{counter-example-1}" ❌ "{counter-example-2}"

Test Results:

• Tested: {date}
• Pass rate: {X/Y}
• Issues: {none/list}

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## 📖 Usage Examples

### Example 1: Stock Analysis Skill

**Selected Patterns:**
```json
"patterns": [
  "(?i)(analyze|analysis)\\s+.*\\s+(stock|stocks?|ticker)s?",
  "(?i)(technical|chart)\\s+(analysis|indicators?)\\s+(for|of)",
  "(?i)(buy|sell)\\s+(signal|recommendation)\\s+(for|using)",
  "(?i)(compare|rank)\\s+.*\\s+stocks?\\s+(using|by)"
]

Example 2: PDF Extraction Skill

Selected Patterns:

"patterns": [
  "(?i)(extract|parse|get)\\s+.*\\s+(from)\\s+(pdf|document)",
  "(?i)(convert|transform)\\s+pdf\\s+(to|into)",
  "(?i)(read|process)\\s+.*\\s+pdf"
]

Example 3: Agent Creation Skill

Selected Patterns:

"patterns": [
  "(?i)(create|build)\\s+(an?\\s+)?(agent|skill)\\s+for",
  "(?i)(automate|automation)\\s+(workflow|process)",
  "(?i)(every day|daily)\\s+I\\s+(have to|need to)",
  "(?i)turn\\s+.*\\s+into\\s+(an?\\s+)?agent"
]

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🔄 Pattern Maintenance

When to Update Patterns

1. False Negatives: Valid queries not matching
2. False Positives: Invalid queries matching
3. New Use Cases: Skill capabilities expanded
4. User Feedback: Reported activation issues

Update Process

1. Identify issue (false negative/positive)
2. Analyze query pattern
3. Update or add pattern
4. Test with 10+ variations
5. Document changes
6. Update marketplace.json

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📚 Additional Resources

• See phase4-detection.md for complete detection guide
• See activation-testing-guide.md for testing procedures
• See ACTIVATION_BEST_PRACTICES.md for best practices

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Version: 1.0 Last Updated: 2025-10-23 Maintained By: Agent-Skill-Creator Team