audit-registry-listing — The registry is the landing page

Degree of freedom: MIXED. What the first screen should say [HIGH freedom]; the metadata checklist and the tarball check [LOW freedom — run exactly].

Read-only. For a package, plugin, skill pack, or CLI, discovery happens in a registry and the README's first ten lines are the hero. This skill checks every surface a stranger sees before the repo, reports gaps with evidence, and hands fixes to the owning skills.

This skill vs neighbors

Do not fire for "make the README prettier" → enhance-readme.

How to reason

1. Surface — which registry or page does a stranger hit first for this repo?
2. Ten lines — can they say what it is, for whom, and how to install, before scrolling?
3. Metadata — does the registry card (name, description, keywords, homepage, repo, license) say the same thing?
4. Tarball — does the published artifact contain what the README promises and nothing it should not?
5. Path — install to first success in under a minute, on a clean machine?

Worked example

Surface: npm page + skills.sh card + GitHub repo. Ten lines: README opens with a logo and a count ("145 skills · 57 commands"); the outcome appears in paragraph 3. Metadata: npm description repeats the count; GitHub description empty; 4 topics; no social preview; homepage points at skills.sh (good). Tarball: npm pack --dry-run shows docs/screenshots/ (12 MB) shipping; llms.txt present. Path: npx @kensaurus/skills --all works; first-run message tells the user to restart Cursor — good. Findings: hero leads with counts (major → enhance-readme/docs-writer); GitHub description + preview missing (minor → repo settings); screenshots bloat the tarball (minor → deploy-npm files).

Self-critique before reporting

• Evidence — every finding quotes the line, field, or npm pack output
• Stranger test — the ten-line verdict comes from a fresh-context subagent given only the README's first ten lines and the registry card, nothing else from the repo; this is the one place delegation pays here, because once you have read the repo your own read is no longer a stranger's
• No fixes applied — findings and owners only
• Right owner — visuals → enhance-readme; prose → docs-writer; files → deploy-npm; store → plan-aso

Checklist [LOW freedom — run exactly]

A · README first screen

• Line 1–10: name, one outcome sentence (not a count), who it is for, install one-liner, one screenshot or terminal GIF.
• Badges: version, license, one live proof (installs/downloads); no broken or stale badges.
• Quickstart to first success ≤ 5 steps; a "what it is not" line.

B · Registry metadata (npm / PyPI / crates / gems)

• name, description (outcome-first, ≤ 140 chars), keywords (the queries people type), homepage, repository, bugs, license, engines.
• README rendered on the registry equals the repo README (or a deliberate short version).
• npm pack --dry-run / python -m build listing: everything promised present; no .env*, keys, screenshots, tests, or 10 MB+ assets unless intended; files whitelist present.
• bin names match the README; npx <pkg> runs without a global install.
• Provenance / trusted publishing badge if available.

C · GitHub surface

• Repo description (outcome, ≤ 120 chars), website URL, ≥ 5 topics that match the keywords, social preview image set (1280×640), releases with notes, pinned issue or discussion for feedback, SECURITY.md, license detected.

D · Ecosystem manifests

• skills.sh / Cursor / Claude / Codex / Gemini plugin manifests: version in sync with the package, description in sync, install command correct on each surface, listing status honest (submitted ≠ listed).
• MCP registry only if the repo ships a runnable server.

E · Install path

• On a clean profile (temp HOME): install one-liner → first successful action; note every prompt, restart, or missing-key stop; time it.

Report template

# Registry Listing Audit — <package>

## Surfaces checked
| Surface | URL | Fetched |

## Ten-line verdict (stranger read)
What it is: … · For whom: … · How to install: … · Missing: …

## Findings
| # | Surface | Gap | Evidence | Sev | Owner skill |

## Tarball
`npm pack --dry-run` — N files, X MB; unexpected: …

## Install path
Steps … · Time … · Stops …

## Handoff
`enhance-readme` (hero/screenshots) · `docs-writer` (prose) · `deploy-npm` (`files`, metadata) · repo settings (description, topics, preview)

Guardrails

• Read-only. No README, manifest, or repo-settings edits here.
• No count-led heroes. Recommend the outcome sentence; counts go in a badge.
• Honest listing status. "Submitted" and "listed" are different words.

Chains with

• plan-gtm → for repo-as-product, this is Phase 1 evidence.
• enhance-readme / docs-writer → apply the findings.
• deploy-npm → ship metadata and files fixes.
• docs-launch-kit → announce the refreshed listing.