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MakerSkills is an open-source, Markdown-based collection of reusable AI-agent workflows for Claude Code. On a Linux machine, installation is normally a two-command marketplace setup, followed by Bash environment variables and only the external tools required by the skills you intend to use. Run /plugin marketplace add coreyhaines31/makerskills, then /plugin install makerskills@makerskills inside a signed-in Claude Code session. The plugin reads SKILL.md workflow files at runtime, so there is no compiled executable to copy into /usr/local/bin. This guide covers Bash and zsh differences, Ubuntu/Debian and RHEL-family dependencies, local-development symlinks, configuration directories, and fixes for SSH, timeout, activation, and macOS-only dependency errors.
What is MakerSkills, and what does Linux actually install?
MakerSkills is a documentation-first, open-source collection of agent workflows. The project describes each skill as a workflow document that you can invoke with a slash command such as /decide, or read and execute manually by following its SKILL.md instructions. The automation is a side effect of those instructions rather than a separate compiled application.
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The project’s official site currently presents 20 skills — Maker Skills, 2026. That count and the available workflow names can change as the repository evolves, so treat the current repository as the authority when a command or skill name differs from this article.
Examples include:
- decide for a structured decision process;
- deep-research for research with citations;
- second-brain for a Markdown knowledge vault;
- read-book for PDF and EPUB processing;
- watch-video for transcripts and key moments;
- domain for checking
.comavailability; and - company-brain for a shared company vault.
At runtime, Claude Code loads the skill directories and their Markdown instructions. You therefore need a working Claude Code installation, Git and curl for the normal setup, plus any command-line tools required by a particular workflow. You do not install a MakerSkills binary system-wide.
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Keep the project’s README and installation notes available at https://github.com/coreyhaines31/makerskills; that repository is where current commands, file names, and skill-specific changes are published.
What should I check before installing on Linux?
Install Claude Code, sign in, and confirm that your shell can run the basic tools before opening the plugin marketplace.
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- Check Claude Code itself:
claude --version - Check Git:
git --version - Check curl:
curl --version - Start a Claude Code session that is already authenticated. The Linux installation walkthrough assumes sign-in is complete before marketplace commands are run.
If the first command is unavailable, install Claude Code using its current official method before troubleshooting MakerSkills. If Git or curl is missing, add them with your distribution’s package manager and repeat the checks.
How do I install MakerSkills from the Claude Code marketplace?
Run the two marketplace commands from inside Claude Code, not in an ordinary Bash prompt. They register the repository as a marketplace and then install the MakerSkills plugin from it.
- Open a signed-in Claude Code session.
- Register the marketplace by entering:
/plugin marketplace add coreyhaines31/makerskills - Install the plugin with:
/plugin install makerskills@makerskills - Read the installation output. If Claude Code says plugins need activation or are not visible in the current session, run:
/reload-plugins
The commands above are the verbatim marketplace procedure documented by the project’s README and installation file. A successful install makes the skill instructions available to Claude Code; it does not place a global executable in /usr/local/bin.
How do I configure MakerSkills for Bash instead of zsh?
Put the exports in ~/.bashrc when Bash is your interactive shell, then reload that file. The upstream example uses ~/.zshenv for zsh, but copying zsh instructions into Bash can leave Claude Code without the variables it needs.
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nano ~/.bashrc - Add the base configuration, changing example paths to directories that exist on your machine:
export MAKERSKILLS_CONFIG="$HOME/.config/makerskills" export MAKERSKILLS_MEMORY="$HOME/.config/makerskills/memory" export SECOND_BRAIN_VAULT="$HOME/Documents/SecondBrain" export COMPANY_BRAIN_VAULT="$HOME/Documents/CompanyBrain" export COMPANY_CFO_ROOT="$HOME/code/company-cfo" export SLIDE_DECK_REPO="$HOME/code/your-personal-site-repo" - Save the file and reload it in the current terminal:
source ~/.bashrc - Start a new Claude Code session, or reload plugins if the existing session does not see the configuration.
The configuration and memory paths are the base locations. The vault, finance, and slide-deck variables point to your own data and repositories; they are not created automatically by the plugin. The installation notes say defaults usually work and that optional variables can be omitted, so define only the workflows you plan to use.
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To confirm that Bash expanded the variables, run:
printf '%sn' "$MAKERSKILLS_CONFIG" "$MAKERSKILLS_MEMORY"Do not paste secrets into ~/.bashrc. These variables identify local folders; credentials for external services should follow those services’ normal secret-management guidance.
Which configuration directories and files do I need?
Create configuration directories for the workflows you will actually run. A broad starter pattern from the project is:
mkdir -p ~/.config/makerskills/{jab-hook,pm,decide,business-brainstorm,deep-research,personal-cfo,slide-deck,unstuck,maker-council}Some workflows also use example YAML configuration files supplied by the repository, including settings for Typefully and portfolio properties. Copy those examples only when you use the corresponding workflow, and keep the copied files under the matching directory in ~/.config/makerskills. Avoid creating every possible vault or repository path just to satisfy the example exports; unused paths can remain unset.
After creating or copying configuration, run source ~/.bashrc again if you changed an exported path. A skill that writes to a Markdown vault or company repository will fail or write to the wrong place when the path points to a nonexistent or unintended directory.
What Linux dependencies do individual skills need?
MakerSkills does not require one universal dependency bundle. Install a tool when a workflow calls for it, rather than adding every utility to a minimal server. The Linux walkthrough identifies the following examples:
| Tool | Typical workflows that may need it | Linux installation note |
|---|---|---|
| Git | Marketplace access, repository work, and skills that inspect or modify code | Install from the distribution package manager; verify with git --version. |
| curl | Fetching URLs or data from shell instructions | Install from the distribution package manager; verify with curl --version. |
| ffmpeg | Audio and video conversion used by media-oriented workflows | Available from Ubuntu/Debian and RHEL-family repositories; install only if a skill requests it. |
| pandoc | Document-format conversion | Use your distribution package or the project’s supported installation method. |
| git-filter-repo | Repository history rewriting or cleanup | Package names differ by distribution; confirm the command is available after installation. |
| calibre | Book and ebook processing for workflows such as read-book |
Use a package appropriate to your distribution and desktop/server environment. |
| whois | Domain lookup workflows such as domain |
Install the command-line package supplied by your distribution. |
| yt-dlp | Video retrieval for media workflows such as watch-video |
The walkthrough recommends installing through uv when distribution versions lag. |
On Ubuntu or Debian, package names commonly match the tool names. A typical example is:
sudo apt update
sudo apt install git curl ffmpeg pandoc git-filter-repo calibre whoisOn RHEL, Rocky, or another Fedora-family system, use the enabled repositories and their package manager, for example:
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sudo dnf install git curl ffmpeg pandoc git-filter-repo calibre whoisRepository availability varies by release and enabled repositories, especially for calibre and git-filter-repo. If your distribution does not provide a current yt-dlp, install it in an isolated tool environment with:
uv tool install yt-dlpThese commands are dependency examples, not a requirement to install the entire list. Read the individual SKILL.md first and add only what that workflow invokes.
How can I use a local clone for development?
A local clone is useful when you want to inspect, edit, or test skill Markdown before using it in Claude Code. Clone the repository, then symlink that checkout into Claude Code’s plugin directory.
- Clone the project:
git clone https://github.com/coreyhaines31/makerskills - Create the plugin parent directory if needed:
mkdir -p ~/.claude/plugins - Link the checkout at the expected plugin path:
ln -sfn "$PWD/makerskills" ~/.claude/plugins/makerskills - In Claude Code, run
/reload-pluginsso the current session rereads the plugin.
The link target in the example assumes you ran git clone from the directory where you want the checkout to live. If you cloned elsewhere, replace $PWD/makerskills with the absolute path to that directory. Keep the checkout writable if you intend to contribute changes, and review updates before exposing new workflows to production data.
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How do I invoke and understand a MakerSkills workflow?
Use a slash command when the skill exposes one, or open its SKILL.md and follow the procedure manually. This makes the collection useful even when you want to adapt a workflow to a different shell, directory layout, or review process.
Slash-command use
In Claude Code, type the documented command, such as /decide, and provide the context requested by that workflow. The exact prompt fields and output steps belong to the skill’s current Markdown file.
Manual use
Open the relevant SKILL.md, check its prerequisites, then execute each shell command or editing step yourself. Manual execution is preferable when a workflow touches company vaults, financial files, repositories, or external services and you need to approve every side effect.
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External-command boundaries
Some skills only provide instructions, while others ask Claude Code to execute tools such as ffmpeg, pandoc, or yt-dlp. Read the file before granting access to sensitive directories and verify that generated files go where you expect.
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That error means the Git operation attempted SSH authentication and your host did not accept the available key. Force the plugin operation to prefer HTTPS, then retry the marketplace command.
export CLAUDE_CODE_PLUGIN_PREFER_HTTPS=1Run the export in the same Bash environment where you will open Claude Code, or add it to ~/.bashrc and reload the file:
source ~/.bashrcThen retry:
/plugin marketplace add coreyhaines31/makerskills
/plugin install makerskills@makerskillsThis workaround avoids debugging SSH keys when HTTPS access is sufficient. If your organization requires an internal Git mirror or proxy, follow its Git configuration instead and confirm that the repository URL is reachable.
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Increase the plugin Git timeout to five minutes and repeat the operation. This changes the wait limit; it does not repair DNS, proxy, firewall, or repository-access problems.
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export CLAUDE_CODE_PLUGIN_GIT_TIMEOUT_MS=300000After exporting the variable, retry the marketplace add and install commands. If the timeout persists, test basic connectivity to the repository with your organization’s approved network tools and check whether a proxy or firewall is interrupting Git traffic.
Why is the plugin missing from my current Claude Code session?
A successful installation can still require a plugin reload before the running session notices the new files. Execute:
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/reload-pluginsIf the command does not resolve the issue, close and reopen Claude Code, confirm that the marketplace installation completed without an error, and verify that the Bash variables are present in the environment that launched Claude Code.
What is the Linux alternative to the macOS transcription dependency?
The Linux walkthrough notes that mlx-whisper targets Apple Silicon. It is therefore not the right assumption for a standard Linux host. If the watch-video workflow requires transcription, choose a Linux-compatible transcription tool and follow that workflow’s current instructions instead of trying to install the macOS-specific dependency unchanged.
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How should I maintain and secure a MakerSkills installation?
Keep the plugin and its data separate. The checkout or marketplace-managed plugin contains workflow instructions, while vaults and repositories named by your environment variables contain your personal or company information.
- Review a new or locally edited
SKILL.mdbefore running it against sensitive files. - Use dedicated test directories when evaluating a workflow that creates, moves, or rewrites content.
- Back up Markdown vaults and repositories before running bulk transformations.
- Install only the external utilities a workflow needs and keep them updated through your distribution or isolated tool environment.
- Recheck the repository’s current installation notes when commands, skill names, or the published skill count change.
No stable benchmark for task-success rate, latency, or productivity improvement is published with the project materials. Choose a workflow because its documented process fits your task, not because of an unsupported performance promise.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I install MakerSkills without creating every vault directory?
Yes. The exported vault and repository paths are optional for workflows you do not use. Define the variables and create directories only for the skills that need them; otherwise leave those exports unset or pointed at an existing location.
How do I update a local MakerSkills checkout?
Change into the cloned repository and run git pull, review the changed Markdown, then run /reload-plugins in Claude Code. A symlink continues to point at the updated checkout, so no second installation is required.
Will MakerSkills run on a headless Linux server?
The workflow documents are text files and can load on a headless host, but individual skills may require desktop-oriented tools such as Calibre or media utilities. Check each skill’s prerequisites and provide a noninteractive alternative when a workflow assumes a graphical application.
How can I see exactly what a skill will do before invoking it?
Open that skill’s SKILL.md in the installed plugin or local checkout and read its commands, paths, and expected outputs. Running the steps manually lets you approve external commands and file changes one at a time.
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