Enhance CLAUDE.md: Onboarding & Usability Improvements

Oct 24, 2025 by SLV Team 55 views

Hey guys! Based on Claude Chat's review, we've got some awesome suggestions to make our CLAUDE.md way more user-friendly, especially for those just joining the party. These improvements are all about making onboarding smoother, avoiding common slip-ups, and organizing things like pros.

Proposed Enhancements

Let's dive into what we're planning to do to level up our documentation game. Each of these enhancements is designed to make life easier for new contributors and keep our documentation top-notch.

1. Add "First Time Working" Section

First time working with Claude? No sweat! We're adding a quick 5-minute onboarding checklist to get you up to speed in no time. This section is your express lane to understanding the essentials. We want to ensure every new contributor feels welcome and knows exactly where to start, making their first interaction a breeze. The checklist will include:

Read this document (5 min): Get the lay of the land.
Review Git Safety Guidelines (critical!): Safety first, always!
Scan Development Workflow: Understand the 3 phases like a boss.
Optional: Best Practices for deeper insights. Dive in if you're feeling ambitious!

This section aims to reduce the initial overwhelm and point new contributors to the most critical information right away. It's like a friendly tour guide, ensuring everyone knows where the restrooms and emergency exits are before the show begins. We believe this will drastically cut down the time it takes for new folks to become productive and confident contributors.

2. Add "Prerequisites" Section

Before you even think about coding, let's make sure you've got all the prerequisites locked down. This section will list out everything you need before you start your journey with Claude. Think of it as your pre-flight checklist, ensuring you have everything to take off smoothly. We're talking about:

Claude Code CLI installed: (with setup guide link) Your trusty tool belt.
Git configured with GitHub account: Gotta be ready to commit!
Familiarity with Conventional Commits: Keep those commits tidy.
Understanding of Git Safety Guidelines: Seriously, read these.

By clearly outlining these requirements, we're hoping to eliminate those frustrating "I can't believe I forgot to install the CLI!" moments. This ensures everyone is on the same page and ready to roll from the get-go. Plus, it reduces the number of support questions and keeps everyone focused on the fun stuff: contributing awesome code!

3. Enhance "Philosophy" Section

Let's get philosophical, guys! We're beefing up our philosophy section with a key principle: Question and Validate. This isn't just about blindly accepting what Claude spits out. It's about always maintaining a healthy dose of skepticism and verifying Claude's solutions. We want to foster a culture of critical thinking and continuous improvement.

Question and Validate: Always maintain healthy skepticism and verify Claude's solutions. This principle encourages contributors to think critically about the suggestions provided by Claude, ensuring they are accurate and appropriate for the task at hand. It's not about distrusting Claude, but about ensuring the highest quality and accuracy in our work.

This addition reinforces the idea that Claude is a tool to augment our abilities, not replace them. We want contributors to understand that their judgment and expertise are still crucial in the development process. By emphasizing this principle, we aim to create a more robust and reliable development workflow. It's all about working smarter, not just harder!

4. Improve "Quick Reference" Section

Gotta make our Quick Reference section even quicker! We're jazzing it up with visual emojis for better scanning (🔄, 🚫, 📝, 🏷️). Think of it like adding road signs to a highway – making it easier to navigate at a glance. Plus, we're adding more detail on the batch development flow (Complete tasks → Show changes → Get approval → Commit → Repeat).

Here’s the breakdown:

Add visual emojis: 🔄 for refresh, 🚫 for stop, 📝 for notes, 🏷️ for tags. These emojis will act as visual cues, helping users quickly identify the purpose of each section or instruction. It's all about making the information more accessible and memorable.
Add more detail on batch development flow: "Complete tasks → Show changes → Get approval → Commit → Repeat". This clarifies the iterative process of developing with Claude, emphasizing the importance of getting approval before committing changes. It ensures that everyone is on the same page and that code is reviewed before it becomes permanent.
Make workflow phases more visual and scannable: Use formatting and spacing to visually separate the different phases of the workflow. This makes it easier to understand the sequence of steps and reduces the cognitive load on the user. Think of it as creating a visual roadmap for the development process.

5. Add "Common Pitfalls" Section

Let's face it, we all make mistakes. So, we're creating a Common Pitfalls section packed with real-world examples to help you avoid those "D'oh!" moments. This section will be like a friendly mentor, pointing out potential hazards and how to steer clear of them.

❌ Creating duplicate resources → ✅ Always check existing labels/branches/files first: This highlights the importance of due diligence before creating new resources.
❌ Committing without review → ✅ Claude asks for approval before every commit: Emphasizes the importance of peer review in maintaining code quality.
❌ Wrong branch context → ✅ Always check current context before operations: Reminds users to always verify their current branch before making changes.
❌ Forgetting status labels → ✅ Manage issue status throughout workflow: Highlights the importance of keeping issue statuses up-to-date for effective project management.
❌ Pushing during development → ✅ Push only happens at END: Reinforces the practice of only pushing code after it has been reviewed and approved.

Each pitfall will be presented with a clear "❌" to indicate the mistake and a "✅" to show the correct approach. This section aims to proactively address common errors and help contributors develop good habits from the start.

6. Improve "Getting Help" Section

Need a hand? We're overhauling the Getting Help section to make it super easy to find what you need. We're organizing it with a clear arrow format (→) to guide you to the right resources. This section will be like a well-organized directory, ensuring you can quickly find the help you need.

New to Claude Code? → Official Documentation: Your go-to resource for all things Claude.
Workflow questions? → Development Workflow: Get clarity on the development process.
Git confusion? → Git Safety Guidelines: Stay safe and sound in the world of Git.
Project questions? → CONTRIBUTING.md: Learn how to contribute to the project.
Code of Conduct → CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md: Understand the rules of engagement.
Found an issue? → Open an issue: Let us know about any problems you encounter.

By using the arrow format, we're creating a clear visual hierarchy that makes it easy to scan and find the relevant resource. This section aims to reduce frustration and ensure that contributors can quickly get the help they need to stay productive.

7. Add "Continuous Improvement" Section

This isn't a static document, folks! We're adding a Continuous Improvement section to explain that this is a living document. We want to make it clear that this documentation is always evolving and improving. It's like a garden that we're constantly tending to, ensuring it stays healthy and vibrant.

Reference Issue #30 for ongoing enhancements: This provides context for the ongoing efforts to improve the documentation.
Explain how to suggest improvements: We want to encourage everyone to contribute their ideas and feedback.
Remind to use "Part of #30" (not "Closes #30") in PRs: This ensures that contributions are properly linked to the ongoing improvement efforts.

By highlighting the continuous improvement aspect, we're fostering a culture of collaboration and shared ownership. We want everyone to feel empowered to contribute to the documentation and make it even better. It's all about working together to create the best possible resource for our community.

Tasks

Here’s a checklist of what needs to be done:

[ ] Add "First Time Working with Claude" section with onboarding checklist
[ ] Add "Prerequisites" section with clear requirements
[ ] Enhance "Philosophy" section with "Question and Validate" principle
[ ] Improve "Quick Reference" with emojis and better visual structure
[ ] Add "First Push" subsection with -u flag example
[ ] Create "Common Pitfalls" section with real-world examples
[ ] Improve "Getting Help" section with arrow format
[ ] Add "Continuous Improvement" section referencing Issue #30
[ ] Review and test the enhanced CLAUDE.md for clarity
[ ] Get feedback on improvements

Acceptance Criteria

Here's what we need to nail to call this a success:

✅ New contributors can onboard in 5 minutes with "First Time Working" section
✅ Prerequisites are clearly listed
✅ Common pitfalls section includes real examples with ❌/✅ format
✅ Quick Reference is more visual and scannable with emojis
✅ Getting Help section is well-organized with clear navigation
✅ Continuous Improvement section explains how to contribute to docs
✅ All existing content remains accurate
✅ Document flows logically for both new and experienced users

Benefits

Why are we doing all this? Check out the perks:

🎯 Faster onboarding for new contributors
📚 Better organized and more scannable content
⚠️ Proactive guidance on common mistakes
🔄 Clear path for continuous documentation improvement
✨ More professional and polished appearance

Keep these links handy:

Issue #30 - Living document for ongoing CLAUDE.md improvements
All docs in docs/claude/ directory