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feat(skills): add adversarial-ux-test optional skill
Adds a structured adversarial UX testing skill that roleplays the worst-case user for any product. Uses a 6-step workflow: 1. Define a specific grumpy persona (age 50+, tech-resistant) 2. Browse the app in-character attempting real tasks 3. Write visceral in-character feedback (the Rant) 4. Apply a pragmatism filter (RED/YELLOW/WHITE/GREEN classification) 5. Create tickets only for real issues (RED + GREEN) 6. Deliver a structured report with screenshots The pragmatism filter is the key differentiator - it prevents raw persona complaints from becoming tickets, separating genuine UX problems from "I hate computers" noise. Includes example personas for 8 industry verticals and practical tips from real-world testing sessions. Ref: https://x.com/Teknium/status/2035708510034641202
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optional-skills/dogfood/DESCRIPTION.md
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optional-skills/dogfood/DESCRIPTION.md
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# Dogfood — Advanced QA & Testing Skills
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Specialized QA workflows that go beyond basic bug-finding. These skills use structured methodologies to surface UX friction, accessibility issues, and product-level problems that standard testing misses.
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optional-skills/dogfood/adversarial-ux-test/SKILL.md
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optional-skills/dogfood/adversarial-ux-test/SKILL.md
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---
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name: adversarial-ux-test
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description: Roleplay the most difficult, tech-resistant user for your product. Browse the app as that persona, find every UX pain point, then filter complaints through a pragmatism layer to separate real problems from noise. Creates actionable tickets from genuine issues only.
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version: 1.0.0
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author: Omni @ Comelse
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license: MIT
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metadata:
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hermes:
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tags: [qa, ux, testing, adversarial, dogfood, personas, user-testing]
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related_skills: [dogfood]
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---
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# Adversarial UX Test
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Roleplay the worst-case user for your product — the person who hates technology, doesn't want your software, and will find every reason to complain. Then filter their feedback through a pragmatism layer to separate real UX problems from "I hate computers" noise.
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Think of it as an automated "mom test" — but angry.
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## Why This Works
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Most QA finds bugs. This finds **friction**. A technically correct app can still be unusable for real humans. The adversarial persona catches:
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- Confusing terminology that makes sense to developers but not users
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- Too many steps to accomplish basic tasks
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- Missing onboarding or "aha moments"
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- Accessibility issues (font size, contrast, click targets)
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- Cold-start problems (empty states, no demo content)
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- Paywall/signup friction that kills conversion
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The **pragmatism filter** (Phase 3) is what makes this useful instead of just entertaining. Without it, you'd add a "print this page" button to every screen because Grandpa can't figure out PDFs.
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## How to Use
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Tell the agent:
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```
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"Run an adversarial UX test on [URL]"
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"Be a grumpy [persona type] and test [app name]"
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"Do an asshole user test on my staging site"
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```
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You can provide a persona or let the agent generate one based on your product's target audience.
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## Step 1: Define the Persona
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If no persona is provided, generate one by answering:
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1. **Who is the HARDEST user for this product?** (age 50+, non-technical role, decades of experience doing it "the old way")
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2. **What is their tech comfort level?** (the lower the better — WhatsApp-only, paper notebooks, wife set up their email)
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3. **What is the ONE thing they need to accomplish?** (their core job, not your feature list)
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4. **What would make them give up?** (too many clicks, jargon, slow, confusing)
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5. **How do they talk when frustrated?** (blunt, sweary, dismissive, sighing)
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### Good Persona Example
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> **"Big Mick" McAllister** — 58-year-old S&C coach. Uses WhatsApp and that's it. His "spreadsheet" is a paper notebook. "If I can't figure it out in 10 seconds I'm going back to my notebook." Needs to log session results for 25 players. Hates small text, jargon, and passwords.
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### Bad Persona Example
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> "A user who doesn't like the app" — too vague, no constraints, no voice.
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The persona must be **specific enough to stay in character** for 20 minutes of testing.
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## Step 2: Become the Asshole (Browse as the Persona)
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1. Read any available project docs for app context and URLs
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2. **Fully inhabit the persona** — their frustrations, limitations, goals
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3. Navigate to the app using browser tools
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4. **Attempt the persona's ACTUAL TASKS** (not a feature tour):
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- Can they do what they came to do?
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- How many clicks/screens to accomplish it?
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- What confuses them?
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- What makes them angry?
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- Where do they get lost?
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- What would make them give up and go back to their old way?
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5. Test these friction categories:
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- **First impression** — would they even bother past the landing page?
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- **Core workflow** — the ONE thing they need to do most often
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- **Error recovery** — what happens when they do something wrong?
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- **Readability** — text size, contrast, information density
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- **Speed** — does it feel faster than their current method?
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- **Terminology** — any jargon they wouldn't understand?
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- **Navigation** — can they find their way back? do they know where they are?
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6. Take screenshots of every pain point
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7. Check browser console for JS errors on every page
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## Step 3: The Rant (Write Feedback in Character)
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Write the feedback AS THE PERSONA — in their voice, with their frustrations. This is not a bug report. This is a real human venting.
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```
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[PERSONA NAME]'s Review of [PRODUCT]
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Overall: [Would they keep using it? Yes/No/Maybe with conditions]
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THE GOOD (grudging admission):
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- [things even they have to admit work]
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THE BAD (legitimate UX issues):
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- [real problems that would stop them from using the product]
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THE UGLY (showstoppers):
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- [things that would make them uninstall/cancel immediately]
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SPECIFIC COMPLAINTS:
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1. [Page/feature]: "[quote in persona voice]" — [what happened, expected]
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2. ...
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VERDICT: "[one-line persona quote summarizing their experience]"
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```
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## Step 4: The Pragmatism Filter (Critical — Do Not Skip)
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Step OUT of the persona. Evaluate each complaint as a product person:
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- **RED: REAL UX BUG** — Any user would have this problem, not just grumpy ones. Fix it.
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- **YELLOW: VALID BUT LOW PRIORITY** — Real issue but only for extreme users. Note it.
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- **WHITE: PERSONA NOISE** — "I hate computers" talking, not a product problem. Skip it.
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- **GREEN: FEATURE REQUEST** — Good idea hidden in the complaint. Consider it.
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### Filter Criteria
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1. Would a 35-year-old competent-but-busy user have the same complaint? → RED
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2. Is this a genuine accessibility issue (font size, contrast, click targets)? → RED
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3. Is this "I want it to work like paper" resistance to digital? → WHITE
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4. Is this a real workflow inefficiency the persona stumbled on? → YELLOW or RED
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5. Would fixing this add complexity for the 80% who are fine? → WHITE
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6. Does the complaint reveal a missing onboarding moment? → GREEN
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**This filter is MANDATORY.** Never ship raw persona complaints as tickets.
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## Step 5: Create Tickets
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For **RED** and **GREEN** items only:
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- Clear, actionable title
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- Include the persona's verbatim quote (entertaining + memorable)
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- The real UX issue underneath (objective)
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- A suggested fix (actionable)
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- Tag/label: "ux-review"
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For **YELLOW** items: one catch-all ticket with all notes.
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**WHITE** items appear in the report only. No tickets.
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**Max 10 tickets per session** — focus on the worst issues.
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## Step 6: Report
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Deliver:
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1. The persona rant (Step 3) — entertaining and visceral
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2. The filtered assessment (Step 4) — pragmatic and actionable
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3. Tickets created (Step 5) — with links
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4. Screenshots of key issues
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## Tips
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- **One persona per session.** Don't mix perspectives.
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- **Stay in character during Steps 2-3.** Break character only at Step 4.
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- **Test the CORE WORKFLOW first.** Don't get distracted by settings pages.
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- **Empty states are gold.** New user experience reveals the most friction.
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- **The best findings are RED items the persona found accidentally** while trying to do something else.
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- **If the persona has zero complaints, your persona is too tech-savvy.** Make them older, less patient, more set in their ways.
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- **Run this before demos, launches, or after shipping a batch of features.**
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- **Register as a NEW user when possible.** Don't use pre-seeded admin accounts — the cold start experience is where most friction lives.
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- **Zero WHITE items is a signal, not a failure.** If the pragmatism filter finds no noise, your product has real UX problems, not just a grumpy persona.
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- **Check known issues in project docs AFTER the test.** If the persona found a bug that's already in the known issues list, that's actually the most damning finding — it means the team knew about it but never felt the user's pain.
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- **Subscription/paywall testing is critical.** Test with expired accounts, not just active ones. The "what happens when you can't pay" experience reveals whether the product respects users or holds their data hostage.
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- **Count the clicks to accomplish the persona's ONE task.** If it's more than 5, that's almost always a RED finding regardless of persona tech level.
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## Example Personas by Industry
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These are starting points — customize for your specific product:
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| Product Type | Persona | Age | Key Trait |
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|-------------|---------|-----|-----------|
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| CRM | Retirement home director | 68 | Filing cabinet is the current CRM |
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| Photography SaaS | Rural wedding photographer | 62 | Books clients by phone, invoices on paper |
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| AI/ML Tool | Department store buyer | 55 | Burned by 3 failed tech startups |
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| Fitness App | Old-school gym coach | 58 | Paper notebook, thick fingers, bad eyes |
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| Accounting | Family bakery owner | 64 | Shoebox of receipts, hates subscriptions |
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| E-commerce | Market stall vendor | 60 | Cash only, smartphone is for calls |
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| Healthcare | Senior GP | 63 | Dictates notes, nurse handles the computer |
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| Education | Veteran teacher | 57 | Chalk and talk, worksheets in ring binders |
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## Rules
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- Stay in character during Steps 2-3
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- Be genuinely mean but fair — find real problems, not manufactured ones
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- The pragmatism filter (Step 4) is **MANDATORY**
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- Screenshots required for every complaint
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- Max 10 tickets per session
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- Test on staging/deployed app, not local dev
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- One persona, one session, one report
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