AI-Mentored Development
AI guides, you build. You own the result.

_{v2.3.0 · MIT License}

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The Problem

AI coding tools optimize for shipping. The risk: code that works but isn't truly yours. Hard to debug without context. Hard to extend without asking again. Hard to defend when it matters.

OwnYourCode flips this. AI becomes your mentor, not your coder. It guides, questions, and reviews — but you write the code.

The result: Code you understand. Code you can extend. Code that's actually yours.

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Who This Is For

Profile selection is part of /own:init. Choose your profile and OwnYourCode adapts its teaching style.

Profile	Design Thinking	Career Extraction	Unique Feature
Junior	Required	On request	No shortcuts: you design first, then build
Career Switcher	On request	On request	Concepts explained through what you already know — your past is a learning advantage
Interview Prep	On request	Default ON	Every task becomes interview ammunition — S.T.A.R story and resume bullet extraction
Experienced	On request	On request	You have the experience, get direct feedback and peer-level collaboration
Custom	On request	On request	Mix and match to fit how you learn

Profiles adapt HOW we teach. The core (6 Gates, code reviews, quality) stays the same. Change anytime with /own:profile.

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Quick Start

macOS / Linux

curl -sSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/DanielPodolsky/ownyourcode/main/scripts/base-install.sh | bash
cd your-project && ~/ownyourcode/scripts/project-install.sh

Windows (PowerShell)

irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/DanielPodolsky/ownyourcode/main/scripts/base-install.ps1 | iex
cd your-project
irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/DanielPodolsky/ownyourcode/main/scripts/project-install.ps1 | iex

Initialize

/own:init

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How It Works

The 4 Protocols

Protocol	Rule
Active Typist	You write all code. AI provides patterns (max 8 lines), guidance, and reviews.
Socratic Teaching	AI asks questions instead of giving answers.
Evidence-Based	AI verifies with official docs before answering.
Systematic Debugging	READ → ISOLATE → DOCS → FIX.

The 6 Gates

Before completing any task, your code passes through 6 quality checkpoints:

%%{init: {'theme': 'base', 'themeVariables': {'lineColor': '#aaa'}}}%%
flowchart TB
    Start((" ")) -->|/own:done| Code(["YOUR CODE"])
    Code --> G1["1. Ownership<br/>Walk me through this code"]
    G1 --> G2["2. Security<br/>Is user input validated?"]
    G2 --> G3["3. Errors<br/>What if this operation fails?"]
    G3 --> G4["4. Performance<br/>What happens at<br/>10,000 items?"]
    G4 --> G5["5. Readability<br/>Would a new dev<br/>understand?"]
    G5 --> G6["6. Testing<br/>What tests prove it works?"]
    G6 --> Done(["COMPLETE"])
    Done -.->|Next Feature| Start

    style Start fill:#aaa,stroke:#aaa
    style Code fill:#2d2d2d,color:#fff
    style G1 fill:#8b3a3a,color:#fff
    style G2 fill:#2d2d2d,color:#fff
    style G3 fill:#2d2d2d,color:#fff
    style G4 fill:#2d2d2d,color:#fff
    style G5 fill:#2d2d2d,color:#fff
    style G6 fill:#2d2d2d,color:#fff
    style Done fill:#2d5a3d,color:#fff

Loading

Gate 1 blocks completion. Can't explain your code? Don't ship it.

The Flywheel

Learnings compound across projects. Patterns that worked. Mistakes you won't repeat. Career value extracted from every task.

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Commands

Core Workflow

Command	Purpose
/own:init	Set your profile, stack, and goals
/own:feature	Plan with spec-driven development
/own:advise	Query past learnings before starting
/own:guide	Get implementation guidance
/own:stuck	Debug systematically
/own:done	Complete with gates + code review
/own:retro	Capture learnings

Utilities

Command	Purpose
/own:status	Check progress, tasks, and career stats
/own:profile	View or change your profile
/own:test	Guide through writing tests
/own:docs	Guide through writing documentation

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MCP Setup (Recommended)

MCPs provide real-time documentation and production code examples.

# Context7 — Official documentation lookup
claude mcp add context7 --transport http https://mcp.context7.com/mcp

# Octocode — GitHub code search
https://octocode.ai/#installation

Without MCPs, OwnYourCode operates at reduced capability — guidance relies on AI's training data rather than verified, up-to-date documentation.

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Philosophy

"Won't this slow me down?"

Yes. That's the point.

Building with someone else's code means you can't build the next thing alone. Building yourself takes longer — but now you can build anything.

Full Philosophy →

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_{MIT License}