▤ Trigram Vibe Code System

Trigram Vibe Code System is a VS Code extension for starting and maintaining structured AI-assisted software projects.

It gives a new or existing codebase a durable project framework: canonical documentation, agent roles and operating rules, persistent project context, gated development phases, migration safeguards, and recovery-oriented tooling. Your coding agent still does the coding; Trigram gives it a project structure it can return to instead of rediscovering the codebase and your rules every session.

The goal is simple: start organized, stay organized, and make AI-assisted development more predictable without giving up control of your project.

What Trigram helps you do

Start a new project with structure already in place

Use + New Project to create a fresh workspace with agent governance, canonical docs/core/ documents, project context tooling, ignore rules, and optional Git/GitHub setup. Trigram also supports reusable scaffold packages (*.vcs.zip) and optional UIVerse design-system assets.

New Project will not scaffold into a destination that already exists. Existing directories belong to the conversion workflow instead.

Bring an existing codebase into Trigram without surrendering it

Use ☷ Convert to VCS to add the Trigram framework to an existing project either in place or through a safe clone.

Before it writes, Trigram builds a migration plan and asks for confirmation. Existing .agents/, docs/core/, context databases, vault keys, and ignore rules are preserved rather than silently replaced. Pre-existing Markdown backups retain their relative directory structure under docs/pre-existing/.

If Trigram cannot safely determine how to preserve important state, it stops instead of guessing. For example, vault-enabled setup stops when an existing context database is present without its original key, and clone migration rejects unsupported linked-worktree Git pointers or source symlinks rather than producing a knowingly incomplete clone.

Give coding agents persistent project instructions

Trigram installs a governance layer that tells agents where project truth lives, how work should progress, what must be preserved, and when the agent should stop or ask for approval.

The built-in roles separate architectural decisions, implementation, integrations, and documentation stewardship. ⏻ Agent Initialization Prompt generates a reusable grounding prompt for a new agent or conversation so the project does not have to be explained from scratch each time.

Move deliberately from idea to implementation

Agent Modes provide a visible development flow:

✧ Brainstorm → ☷ Plan → ⚙ Build

The accompanying governance rules define what an agent may do in each phase and where explicit approval is required. ▶ Proceed provides a clear advancement signal when the workflow calls for one.

Keep useful project context between sessions

Trigram maintains local project context that agents and developers can query later. ⤓ Save Context can preserve supported IDE conversation artifacts as human-readable Markdown, while the workspace sync tools maintain .vibe-rag.json and .vibe-tracker.md for local context lookup and ingestion tracking.

The current context search uses weighted local matching across metadata, paths, summaries, tags, and stored content. Everything remains local to the project unless you deliberately use an external integration.

Handle secrets without putting them in project conversation history

The encrypted vault provides a local workflow for sensitive project values, including AES-256 encryption, configurable inactivity locking, and explicit ⚿ Pre-Decrypt / ⛨ Lock Vault controls.

Vault material is separate from normal project documentation and should never be copied into agent chat, reports, templates, or public distribution artifacts.

Reuse project setups and reach external consoles faster

Trigram can save reusable scaffold packages to local or network storehouses, including selected files, folders, directory structures, and password-protected payloads. Master vault keys are excluded from scaffold packages.

The ⎔ Cloud & Provider Helper provides shortcuts to commonly needed configuration areas for services such as Firebase, Google Cloud, Supabase, GitHub, Vercel, Netlify, Wix Studio/Velo, AI platforms, and Stripe.

Getting started

1. Install and open Trigram in VS Code.
2. Choose + New Project for a new workspace or ☷ Convert to VCS for an existing codebase.
3. Review and confirm the proposed setup or migration where prompted.
4. Use ⏻ Agent Initialization Prompt at the beginning of a new coding-agent session.
5. Work through ✧ Brainstorm, ☷ Plan, and ⚙ Build as appropriate for the task.
6. Use the context tools to preserve durable project knowledge instead of repeatedly re-explaining it.
7. If you unlock sensitive vault material, use ⛨ Lock Vault when that work is finished.

Core capabilities

• New-project scaffolding and non-destructive existing-project conversion
• Canonical project documentation and persistent agent governance
• Architect, Builder, Integrator, and Curator agent roles
• Local project-context indexing, querying, scratch notes, and ingestion tracking
• Context preservation from supported coding environments
• Local encrypted vault lifecycle for sensitive project values
• Reusable encrypted scaffold packages and storehouses
• Optional Git and GitHub project setup
• Cloud and provider console shortcuts
• Optional UIVerse design-system scaffolding
• Guarded infrastructure for projects that maintain a separate public-facing repository

Preservation first

Trigram treats an existing project as user-owned state, not blank scaffolding.

Conversion is designed around plan → confirm → apply. Existing governance, documentation, context data, vault keys, Git history, and ignore rules are preserved where supported. When a safe migration cannot be established, Trigram should stop and make the conflict visible rather than silently replacing existing state.

This preservation model is the baseline for future Trigram behavior: stability, deterministic outcomes, and recoverability take priority over convenience features.

Supported UI languages

Trigram currently ships 16 UI bundles: English, German (Deutsch), Spanish (Español), Finnish (Suomi), French (Français), Italian (Italiano), Japanese (日本語), Korean (한국어), Malay (Bahasa Melayu), Dutch (Nederlands), Polish (Polski), Portuguese (Português), Russian (Русский), Swedish (Svenska), Ukrainian (Українська), and Simplified Chinese (简体中文).

Support the project

If Trigram is useful in your workflow, you can support its continued development through Ko-fi. Stories, bug reports, and examples of how you use it are also welcome at don@trigr.am.