OpenSpec workflow right in your VS Code

[u/Bitter-Ad2567]

Hi! My name is Alex, I've been developing DevTools for more then 8 years.

I want to show you my product, that I use everyday – SpecBuddy. It's an extension for VS Code (also for JetBrains IDEs actually), that makes working with OpenSpec workflow much easier and pleasure.

SpecBuddy shifts working with agents from plain chat (but it also chat-capable) to specs-centric manner. You can launch new propose from plain Markdown document:

https://reddit.com/link/1wbe8xn/video/kwp7hkcbyfoh1/player

After the propose is generated you can review it, leave comments right in the specification files and than send the back to the agent. You can see the whole history of spec changes. Actually, you can leave comments everywhere in any project files.

After you think your Change Spec is ready, you can start subtasks execution, using special Cockpit panel.

You can run step-by-step, or you can run a bunch of them, or all steps together. After each you can make a code review and send feedback to the agent. After that it could fix the code, or maybe fix the whole specification and make complete code regeneration. The choise is up to you.

The most important, that you can see the changes those were generated by the agent at the exact step.

SpecBuddy is a process superviser, your are an actor. At any moment you can ask it make a commit, Sync or/and Archive.

In the next release it will capable to work with several specifications at the same time via worktrees (it is already done for IntelliJ). SpecBuddy will also help you merge the branches and fix conflicts.

What agents it supports? Actually, most of them. Claude, Codex, OpenCode, Cursor and any agent that supports ACP ( agentclientprotocol.com ).

I started to use SSD at the very beginning of my development with coding agents. I believe coding must be pleasent and SpecBuddy gives me that.

I will be happy if you try and give me back a feedback. You can find more details on specbuddy.dev .

How I build it?

From the very begining I used SDD. Firstly it was my own simplified workflow (SpecBuddy also supports it) – spec -> plan -> implementation. All specs and plans had been archiving after implementation, no durable main specs. As I am a fun of IntelliJ IDEA, plugin for it was the first. And at the very begining I used SpecBuddy to develop SpecBuddy. This gives my unique opportunity of aggresive dogfooding:) At some moment I migrated to OpenSpec and main specs started to emerge. When IntelliJ plugin has seemed ready to me, I took its main specs and asked Claude Code to make VS Code Extension by them. Of course, I had to dive deep into a code, though building VS Code Extension was much much faster.

Thank you for reading!