KB Query

Search, answer, and generate outputs from the approved live layer.

In Karpathy's words: "good answers can be filed back into the wiki as new pages." In this bundle, that compounding still respects draft -> review -> live. Strong query results archive cleanly, then feed later writeback or maintenance work.

When a user speaks in the simpler raw/wiki/output language from Chinese-LLM-Wiki, translate it instead of widening the truth boundary:

• 综合页 usually means a grounded reusable analysis, so start in outputs/qa/**
• output/analyses maps to archived grounded analysis, not approved truth
• 先读 wiki/index.md remains the default navigation posture

Minimal loop

1. locate the best approved live pages and briefings
2. answer or draft the artifact from wiki/live/
3. archive the result when it is substantive
4. record the smallest durable delta that should flow back through review later

Read before querying

• local AGENTS.md
• local CLAUDE.md if present
• ../obsidian-notes-karpathy/scripts/skill-contract-registry.json
• ../obsidian-notes-karpathy/references/file-model.md
• ../obsidian-notes-karpathy/references/archive-model.md
• ../obsidian-notes-karpathy/references/qa-template.md
• ../obsidian-notes-karpathy/references/query-writeback-lifecycle.md

Treat skill-contract-registry.json as the canonical source for required references, baseline command, and expected write surfaces.

If onkb is available, run onkb --json query scope <vault-root> first and treat its output as the deterministic baseline for live-layer retrieval boundaries.

If onkb is missing, follow the install fallback in ../obsidian-notes-karpathy/references/lifecycle-matrix.md, then rerun the same command.

Then start with:

• wiki/index.md
• wiki/live/indices/INDEX.md
• wiki/live/indices/CONCEPTS.md
• wiki/live/indices/SOURCES.md
• wiki/live/indices/TOPICS.md when present
• wiki/live/indices/QUESTIONS.md when present
• relevant wiki/briefings/{role}.md when the request maps to a role
• prior outputs/qa/

The navigation indices (INDEX.md, CONCEPTS.md, SOURCES.md, TOPICS.md, RECENT.md) and the managed onkb:indices block in wiki/index.md are rebuilt deterministically by onkb review indices, so treat them as trustworthy entry points. If they look stale relative to wiki/live/**, run onkb --json review indices <vault-root> as a dry drift check and route the repair through kb-review maintenance mode instead of hand-editing them.

Load on demand

Load these only when the trigger applies:

• ../obsidian-notes-karpathy/references/chinese-llm-wiki-compat.md — when the request leans on Chinese-LLM-Wiki vocabulary beyond the mappings inlined in this SKILL
• ../obsidian-notes-karpathy/references/lifecycle-matrix.md — when onkb is missing (install fallback) or a stage handoff is unclear
• ../obsidian-notes-karpathy/references/briefing-template.md — when rebuilding or repairing wiki/briefings/**
• ../obsidian-notes-karpathy/references/content-output-template.md — when producing publish-mode artifacts under outputs/content/
• ../obsidian-notes-karpathy/references/activity-log-template.md — when appending an entry to wiki/log.md
• ../obsidian-notes-karpathy/references/questions-and-reflection-policy.md — when standing questions, reflection notes, or QUESTIONS.md governance is involved
• ../obsidian-notes-karpathy/references/search-upgrades.md — when retrieval quality tuning or scaling beyond the default ranking is on the table
• ../obsidian-notes-karpathy/references/memory-lifecycle.md — when MEMORY.md or episodic memory boundaries are involved
• ../obsidian-notes-karpathy/references/graph-contract.md — when graph exports, related edges, or relationship candidates are involved
• ../obsidian-notes-karpathy/references/render-template.md — when handing off to kb-render
• ../obsidian-notes-karpathy/references/profile-contract.md — when account profiles or source_profile metadata is involved
• ../obsidian-notes-karpathy/references/episode-template.md — when outputs/episodes/** work is involved
• ../obsidian-notes-karpathy/references/web-export-template.md — when running web export mode

Hard boundary

• wiki/live/** is the default truth source
• raw/ and wiki/drafts/ are not retrieval truth
• MEMORY.md is collaboration context, not topic truth
• outputs/episodes/ and graph snapshots can surface candidates, but they do not outrank approved live pages
• archived outputs are reusable, but they remain artifact archive rather than approved truth

If a human explicitly asks for source inspection, you may cite raw evidence. Default synthesis should still stay on approved live coverage.

Modes

search

• use when the user wants ranked local candidates first
• output a ranked page list with short relevance notes
• do not create a new archive file unless the user asks

research

• use when the user wants a grounded reusable answer
• save substantive outputs under outputs/qa/
• this is the closest current mapping to output/analyses

publish

• use when the user wants creator-facing prose grounded in approved knowledge
• save article / thread / newsletter / talk-outline artifacts under outputs/content/
• reuse prior archived Q&A when it already contains the needed grounded synthesis

web

• use when the user wants a static browseable export from approved knowledge
• save the package under outputs/web/{slug}/index.html
• follow ../obsidian-notes-karpathy/references/web-export-template.md for the site skeleton, per-page frontmatter, slug rules, navigation structure, and search.json shape

reflect-lite

• use when the user wants a synthesis note, question-resolution memo, or gap note that should stay outside live
• archive it under outputs/qa/
• set followup_route: draft if the result exposes durable knowledge work

If the user wants slides, deterministic reports, chart briefs, or canvas outputs from approved knowledge, hand off to kb-render.

Writeback contract

Every substantive query should leave explicit follow-up metadata behind. At minimum, record:

• source_live_pages
• open_questions_touched when relevant
• writeback_candidates
• writeback_status
• followup_route

Use:

• none when the artifact is grounded and self-contained
• draft when durable knowledge should re-enter draft -> review -> live
• review when the next step is a governance or approval pass on already-prepared material

Candidates left at writeback_status: pending with followup_route: draft are picked up later by the deterministic writeback lane (onkb --json compile writeback <vault-root> in kb-compile), which scaffolds a reviewable draft grounded in the recorded source_live_pages and advances the status to drafted. Keep source_live_pages accurate: the lane grounds draft provenance in those approved pages, never in the archived artifact itself.

Prefer the smallest durable delta:

• extend an existing live page when the identity is already correct
• draft a new concept / entity / synthesis when the knowledge is durable but absent
• strengthen relationships or question tracking when the graph is the weak point

Checkpoint

Before archiving a substantive answer, confirm:

• the answer is grounded in approved pages
• archive reuse did not outrank live grounding
• followup_route is concrete
• any writeback_candidates are actionable instead of vague

For simple search-mode lookups, no checkpoint is needed.

Output to the user

Report:

1. which live pages and briefings were used
2. whether prior Q&A was reused
3. where the new artifact was saved
4. whether a query or publish log entry should be appended
5. whether follow-up work belongs in drafts or maintenance instead of directly mutating live