# AGENTS.md — Build guide for ShowTrust

## Project scope
Provide a public form for a name, optional photo, rating and quote, then require owner approval before showing it on an embeddable testimonial wall. Offer removal and consent-record controls.

Catalogue verdict: yes. A submission form, an approval queue, and a grid of cards you can embed elsewhere. There is no algorithm here and no network effect · an agent will produce a working version in one sitting, same as it will for the $25 and $29 tools in this category. The catch is the same one Eloqra has: the hosted version is free for a single site, with no cap on testimonials, so you'd be spending a weekend and a hosting bill to replace zero dollars. Worth building if you want the data on your own box or you enjoy the exercise. Not worth building to save money, because there isn't any to save.
Use the implementation prompt below to define the deliverable. Complete each phase's acceptance checks before extending the scope.

## Working agreement
- Inspect the repository and its existing instructions before choosing paths, dependencies or commands. Keep one coherent stack and explain changes to the proposed architecture.
- Plan a vertical slice that accepts a real input and produces the useful output described below. Persist only the state the prompt calls for; respect memory-only and upstream-managed workflows. Use fixtures only when they are clearly labelled.
- After scaffolding, document the actual install, development, check and build commands in README and keep them synchronized with the package or project manifest. Do not report commands as successful unless they ran.
- Work in small steps. At handoff, list implemented flows, checks actually performed, remaining blockers, and any credentials or provider setup the owner must supply.
- Do not publish, spend money, contact customers, delete source data or run irreversible migrations without the project owner's authorization.

## Prerequisites
- Node, SQLite and private upload storage on persistent disk, public HTTPS hosting and authenticated owner moderation. Obtain contributor publication consent.
- Implementation components: Node.js, TypeScript and Express with server-rendered HTML and small browser modules. SQLite through better-sqlite3 with migrations, prepared statements and a single background worker. Sharp for bounded avatar processing and a public server-rendered embed response.
- Scope boundary: a free tier · one site with uncapped testimonials costs nothing hosted, so the DIY build starts out behind on price; the install itself · an agent can provision the account from your email alone, get working credentials in the same response, create the project and paste the snippet into your framework, with the human only clicking a claim link afterwards · your own build is something you have to go and deploy

## Stack and architecture
- Node.js, TypeScript and Express with server-rendered HTML and small browser modules.
- SQLite through better-sqlite3 with migrations, prepared statements and a single background worker.
- Sharp for bounded avatar processing and a public server-rendered embed response.
- Domain model: testimonial submissions, contributor consent, image assets, moderation decisions and published wall revisions

## Security and data integrity
- Public routes accept only their documented inputs with rate/size limits. Protect every owner/customer action with authenticated authorization and CSRF checks; keep secrets outside exports and redact personal data from logs.
- Correctness boundary: Only actual submitted and approved quotes are displayed; edits must not change a contributor's meaning or fabricate ratings and endorsements.
- Use short SQLite transactions and persist job state before starting work. Give retries stable operation IDs; report incomplete or unknown results instead of silently repeating them.
- Use a consistent SQLite backup and an attachment manifest. Export portable JSON/CSV, then restore to a new directory without overwriting the original data.

## Agent implementation rules
- Project rule — data model: testimonial submissions, contributor consent, image assets, moderation decisions and published wall revisions
- Project rule — preserve this invariant: Only actual submitted and approved quotes are displayed; edits must not change a contributor's meaning or fabricate ratings and endorsements.
- Project rule — acceptance evidence: A pending submission is absent from the public embed; withdrawing consent removes the quote and photo from newly served wall data.

## Optional agent skills and references
- Optional external skill: [web-design-guidelines](https://github.com/vercel-labs/agent-skills/blob/main/skills/web-design-guidelines/SKILL.md) — Review web interfaces for accessibility, keyboard focus, forms, navigation and interaction quality. Review its instructions and compatibility before use; it does not grant deployment, data-access or publication permission.
- Optional external skill: [sharp-edges](https://github.com/trailofbits/skills/blob/main/plugins/sharp-edges/skills/sharp-edges/SKILL.md) — Review security-sensitive APIs and configuration for dangerous defaults and easy-to-misuse interfaces. Review its instructions and compatibility before use; it does not grant deployment, data-access or publication permission.

Read the linked SKILL.md and its dependencies before adding a skill. Select only the skills matching this project's runtime and task; their documentation does not supply API access, credentials or approval to perform external actions. Pin the reviewed revision where the tool supports it. Follow the chosen agent's documented project-level installation mechanism.

## Distribution ideas
These are optional planning notes. Obtain the owner's approval before publishing or contacting anyone.
- Demonstrate the actual ShowTrust-inspired workflow with owned or clearly labeled sample data: Provide a public form for a name, optional photo, rating and quote, then require owner approval before showing it on an embeddable testimonial wall. Offer removal and consent-record controls.
- Publish a reproducible walkthrough with this observable result: A pending submission is absent from the public embed; withdrawing consent removes the quote and photo from newly served wall data.
- Explain who can operate this scoped tool, its setup and ongoing costs, and these remaining product gaps: a free tier · one site with uncapped testimonials costs nothing hosted, so the DIY build starts out behind on price; the install itself · an agent can provision the account from your email alone, get working credentials in the same response, create the project and paste the snippet into your framework, with the human only clicking a claim link afterwards · your own build is something you have to go and deploy Avoid guaranteed savings, performance scores or implied endorsement.

## Engineering roadmap
1. Phase 1 — Scope and fixtures. Implement this bounded workflow: Provide a public form for a name, optional photo, rating and quote, then require owner approval before showing it on an embeddable testimonial wall. Offer removal and consent-record controls. Record prerequisites, select representative user-owned fixtures and document the unsupported features: a free tier · one site with uncapped testimonials costs nothing hosted, so the DIY build starts out behind on price; the install itself · an agent can provision the account from your email alone, get working credentials in the same response, create the project and paste the snippet into your framework, with the human only clicking a claim link afterwards · your own build is something you have to go and deploy
2. Phase 2 — Durable model. Model testimonial submissions, contributor consent, image assets, moderation decisions and published wall revisions Add migrations or a versioned document format, explicit validation, stable IDs and a visible import-error report. Preserve this rule: Only actual submitted and approved quotes are displayed; edits must not change a contributor's meaning or fabricate ratings and endorsements.
3. Phase 3 — Complete the first useful path. Implement the workflow's input, review and output interface, with clear controls and explicit empty/error states. Use short SQLite transactions and persist job state before starting work. Give retries stable operation IDs; report incomplete or unknown results instead of silently repeating them.
4. Phase 4 — Permissions and integration failure. Public routes accept only their documented inputs with rate/size limits. Protect every owner/customer action with authenticated authorization and CSRF checks; keep secrets outside exports and redact personal data from logs. Request integration credentials and permissions only for the enabled feature; show a disconnected state instead of mock results.
5. Phase 5 — Portable handoff. Use a consistent SQLite backup and an attachment manifest. Export portable JSON/CSV, then restore to a new directory without overwriting the original data. Include setup, operating limits, fixture walkthrough and shutdown/restart instructions in the README.
6. Phase 6 — Acceptance scenarios. A pending submission is absent from the public embed; withdrawing consent removes the quote and photo from newly served wall data. Repeat the workflow after restart and with a denied permission or unavailable dependency; show recoverable failure rather than a success placeholder.

## Paid-product capabilities outside this build
- a free tier · one site with uncapped testimonials costs nothing hosted, so the DIY build starts out behind on price
- the install itself · an agent can provision the account from your email alone, get working credentials in the same response, create the project and paste the snippet into your framework, with the human only clicking a claim link afterwards · your own build is something you have to go and deploy
- the design surface you'd otherwise hand-build · multiple layouts, eight card styles, colour palettes, and sliders for width, spacing and radius, all previewable instead of CSS-tweaked by hand
- did-it-work data · impression and CTA-click tracking with click-through rate and which domains your wall is actually being viewed on
- X-verified testimonials · an OAuth flow that reads X's own verified state, so the quote is provably tied to a real handle and avatar

## Implementation prompt
WORKING SLICE
Provide a public form for a name, optional photo, rating and quote, then require owner approval before showing it on an embeddable testimonial wall. Offer removal and consent-record controls.

Build this scoped ShowTrust-inspired workflow with a documented data model and visible failure states.

Architecture
- Node.js, TypeScript and Express with server-rendered HTML and small browser modules.
- SQLite through better-sqlite3 with migrations, prepared statements and a single background worker.
- Sharp for bounded avatar processing and a public server-rendered embed response.

Prerequisites and limits
Node, SQLite and private upload storage on persistent disk, public HTTPS hosting and authenticated owner moderation. Obtain contributor publication consent.
Outside this release: a free tier · one site with uncapped testimonials costs nothing hosted, so the DIY build starts out behind on price; the install itself · an agent can provision the account from your email alone, get working credentials in the same response, create the project and paste the snippet into your framework, with the human only clicking a claim link afterwards · your own build is something you have to go and deploy

Data model and correctness
testimonial submissions, contributor consent, image assets, moderation decisions and published wall revisions
Invariant: Only actual submitted and approved quotes are displayed; edits must not change a contributor's meaning or fabricate ratings and endorsements.
Use short SQLite transactions and persist job state before starting work. Give retries stable operation IDs; report incomplete or unknown results instead of silently repeating them.

Security and privacy
Public routes accept only their documented inputs with rate/size limits. Protect every owner/customer action with authenticated authorization and CSRF checks; keep secrets outside exports and redact personal data from logs.

Recovery and export
Use a consistent SQLite backup and an attachment manifest. Export portable JSON/CSV, then restore to a new directory without overwriting the original data.

Implementation order
1. Phase 1 — Scope and fixtures. Implement this bounded workflow: Provide a public form for a name, optional photo, rating and quote, then require owner approval before showing it on an embeddable testimonial wall. Offer removal and consent-record controls. Record prerequisites, select representative user-owned fixtures and document the unsupported features: a free tier · one site with uncapped testimonials costs nothing hosted, so the DIY build starts out behind on price; the install itself · an agent can provision the account from your email alone, get working credentials in the same response, create the project and paste the snippet into your framework, with the human only clicking a claim link afterwards · your own build is something you have to go and deploy
2. Phase 2 — Durable model. Model testimonial submissions, contributor consent, image assets, moderation decisions and published wall revisions Add migrations or a versioned document format, explicit validation, stable IDs and a visible import-error report. Preserve this rule: Only actual submitted and approved quotes are displayed; edits must not change a contributor's meaning or fabricate ratings and endorsements.
3. Phase 3 — Complete the first useful path. Implement the workflow's input, review and output interface, with clear controls and explicit empty/error states. Use short SQLite transactions and persist job state before starting work. Give retries stable operation IDs; report incomplete or unknown results instead of silently repeating them.
4. Phase 4 — Permissions and integration failure. Public routes accept only their documented inputs with rate/size limits. Protect every owner/customer action with authenticated authorization and CSRF checks; keep secrets outside exports and redact personal data from logs. Request integration credentials and permissions only for the enabled feature; show a disconnected state instead of mock results.
5. Phase 5 — Portable handoff. Use a consistent SQLite backup and an attachment manifest. Export portable JSON/CSV, then restore to a new directory without overwriting the original data. Include setup, operating limits, fixture walkthrough and shutdown/restart instructions in the README.
6. Phase 6 — Acceptance scenarios. A pending submission is absent from the public embed; withdrawing consent removes the quote and photo from newly served wall data. Repeat the workflow after restart and with a denied permission or unavailable dependency; show recoverable failure rather than a success placeholder.

Acceptance
A pending submission is absent from the public embed; withdrawing consent removes the quote and photo from newly served wall data.
Use real source data or clearly labeled fixtures. Explain unsupported input and provider failures; do not fabricate analytics, delivery receipts, accuracy claims or security guarantees.

Optional agent guidance
Optional external skill: [web-design-guidelines](https://github.com/vercel-labs/agent-skills/blob/main/skills/web-design-guidelines/SKILL.md) — Review web interfaces for accessibility, keyboard focus, forms, navigation and interaction quality. Review its instructions and compatibility before use; it does not grant deployment, data-access or publication permission.
Optional external skill: [sharp-edges](https://github.com/trailofbits/skills/blob/main/plugins/sharp-edges/skills/sharp-edges/SKILL.md) — Review security-sensitive APIs and configuration for dangerous defaults and easy-to-misuse interfaces. Review its instructions and compatibility before use; it does not grant deployment, data-access or publication permission.
Project rule — data model: testimonial submissions, contributor consent, image assets, moderation decisions and published wall revisions
Project rule — preserve this invariant: Only actual submitted and approved quotes are displayed; edits must not change a contributor's meaning or fabricate ratings and endorsements.
Project rule — acceptance evidence: A pending submission is absent from the public embed; withdrawing consent removes the quote and photo from newly served wall data.

## Completion evidence
Demonstrate the prompt's acceptance scenarios against the scoped workflow. Include setup from a clean checkout and failure recovery. Check persistence across restart and export/restore only for the state the prompt says to store; for memory-only tools, confirm that temporary content is discarded as specified. Record actual results and remaining limitations. A detailed plan alone does not establish a working replacement.