The skill library

The skill library is the list under Settings > Skills. It shows the skills on this computer, where each one came from, and the versions each one kept, so you can change a skill, bring back a deleted one, or return to an earlier version. The skill library is part of the DataMind Oda desktop app.

What the list shows

Each skill shows where it came from: your own skills folder, a shared location, the project you work in, a custom folder, the skills that come with DataMind Oda, or another source. Skills in your skills folder are editable; the others are read-only in this list.

• Every change to a skill is kept as a saved version; open the skill to browse them, as described below.
• Deleted skills wait in a Recently deleted area and stay restorable from their saved versions. A skill deleted outside the app appears there too.

The list covers this computer, and there is no per-chat view of it. You can open the skills folder in your file manager from here; if the app cannot open folders, it says This computer cannot open folders from the app.

Edit a skill

You can change a skill's description and its instructions. Everything else the skill file holds, including its resource files, stays as it is.

• A skill cannot be renamed: A skill cannot be renamed. Create a new skill instead. Create a new skill when you want a different name.
• Instructions that are too long are refused: The instructions are too long.

Delete and restore a skill

Deleting a skill saves its current version first, so the skill stays restorable. Find it under Recently deleted, most recently deleted first, and restore it: the saved version is written back into your skills folder. A restore keeps the state it replaced, so a restore can itself be undone.

Browse a skill's saved versions

Every change keeps the version before it. Open a skill's saved versions to view, compare and restore earlier ones.

• A version records when it was saved, what saved it, its size, its file count, and whether it is the current one.
• What saved it can be a chat (DataMind Oda created or installed the skill there), a change made here, an import, a restore, a change made outside the app, or the first time the skill was found on this computer.
• Up to ten versions are kept for each skill; older ones drop out as new ones arrive.

Add a skill

Skills reach the list from a chat, from an import, or from your own files in the skills folder. To add one from outside, import it from a folder, a .zip file or a link: the app shows a preview of exactly what will be written and saves nothing until you import. A preview that waits too long expires: The preview expired. Preview the skill again. The sources you can use, and how saves are approved, are on Create and install skills.

Your skills folder and its limits

• The library works only with skills directly inside your skills folder. A skill is a folder with a SKILL.md file inside, or a single .md file.
• It saves a skill's files first and the SKILL.md last, so Oda never picks up a half-written skill.
• A file that would land outside the folder is refused: The file path "<path>" leaves the skill folder.
• Only skills directly inside the folder can be removed: Only skills directly inside your skills folder can be removed.
• A skill the app cannot find answers: Your skills folder has no skill named "<name>".
• Adding a skill whose name already exists is refused first: A skill named "<name>" already exists in your skills folder.
• A skill too large to keep a version cannot be saved, changed or deleted here: The skill "<name>" has more than <n> files or <size>, so its current version cannot be kept in the skill history. Change it in the skills folder instead.
• When a change fails, the app says why: The skills folder could not be changed: <reason>.

Read next: how skills run in chats on Using skills, and what a skill file contains on Skill files and folders.

Questions, answered

Can I rename a skill?

No. A skill keeps its name: A skill cannot be renamed. Create a new skill instead. Create a new skill when you want a different name.

Can I restore a skill I deleted?

Yes. Deleting keeps the skill's current version, and the skill waits under Recently deleted until you restore it. Restoring puts it back into your skills folder.

Can I undo a restore?

Yes. Restoring keeps the state it replaced, so restoring another version takes you back again.

Can I edit a skill that came with DataMind Oda?

No. Bundled skills are not in your skills folder, so they are read-only in this list. You can still run them in chats; see Bundled skills.

How many versions does a skill keep?

Up to ten, the newest ones. Each change saves the version before it.

Why can't I restore an older version?

The version may be gone, or its files may no longer match what was saved:

• No saved version "<id>" of the skill "<name>" exists.
• The saved version of the skill "<name>" is damaged and cannot be used.

If several changes of a skill were saved at the same moment, the extra copy is refused: Too many versions of this skill were saved at the same moment. Try the change again.

Why can't I change or delete a skill any more?

A skill that is too large to keep a version cannot be saved, changed or deleted from the app: The skill "<name>" has more than <n> files or <size>, so its current version cannot be kept in the skill history. Change it in the skills folder instead. Change the skill directly in your skills folder.

Where is my skills folder?

The app keeps it and can open it in your file manager. If it cannot open folders, it says This computer cannot open folders from the app. A skill is a folder with a SKILL.md file inside, or a single .md file; the format is on Skill files and folders.

What if I change a skill outside the app?

The change is picked up on the skill's next load and kept in its versions as a change made outside the app. A skill you delete outside the app shows under Recently deleted.

Why does a skill I added not appear in some presets?

Some presets list a fixed set of skills and do not see skills added later. You can change that in the preset's skill selection; see Presets.