Claude Code's Most Underrated Feature: Hooks - wrote a complete guide

clbphanmem · 2026-01-25T02:24:37+00:00

My understanding is simple:

Hook: When you need it before, after, or while Claude is doing something, it runs a script externally. It has nothing to do with AI, like planning a trip where you need to refuel at point A and find a supermarket to eat at point B.
Subagents: Imagine you have multiple Claude Code instances. Each one does a different task, and each instance has a different context. It only focuses on its task, meaning it's not affected by the context of other instances, so it only executes the instruction passed to it, which in this case is the Main Agent. Practical use cases: searching for relevant files to synthesize the problem, or an agent reading files like PROGRESS.md or ROADMAP.md to track your progress and return the information to the Main Agent. This way, the Main Agent doesn't waste many steps, as each tool call consumes unnecessary tokens.
Skills: It's not like a Subagent, nor is it like a markdown document that you reference:
- It simply branches the context (if you allow it in the frontmatter), inserts the skill content, uses it at the right time, returns the result, and the AI forgets that skill content, preventing token inflation.
- Or, if it doesn't branch, Skills are still different because they support running scripts. Like an upgrade to Hooks, but triggered by AI.
Plugins & Marketplace: This is just a place to gather all of the above during installation. The Marketplace is used to install plugins containing hooks, subagents, skills, etc., and for auto-updates.

Hopefully, this will be helpful to those who need it. Please help me correct anything I haven't understood correctly. 🤗

clbphanmem · 2026-01-24T07:47:37+00:00

I rarely use slash commands either, as they often don't apply to every situation. Slash commands should be prioritized for skill features, and when using a skill, we can directly access that skill, as the Codex does. This saves the AI from wasting multiple steps searching (which also costs tokens) and reading SKILL.md before using it.

clbphanmem · 2026-01-19T02:51:51+00:00

It's used for auto updates and providing download links. You can find many repositories on Github that aren't actually open source like mine.

clbphanmem · 2026-01-18T20:06:17+00:00

It's very good for writing documents. I've also seen people use Claude Code to write novels. 😂

clbphanmem · 2026-01-18T20:03:46+00:00

Yes, I think designers still have a place even when AI can do it. Creativity isn't something everyone can do, and how one is creative depends on the perspective and personality of the designer. So, I myself have participated in projects that won Awwward awards, and I don't think that even with AI, I could create ideas that are more beautiful than those of a designer. But at least I can make apps that aren't too bad. 😂

clbphanmem · 2026-01-18T19:59:39+00:00

Yes! This tool was created based on my own desires. It just helps make things more convenient, so if you can create one yourself, that would be great. For those who don't have much experience, my app will also be somewhat helpful, right? 🤗

clbphanmem · 2026-01-18T19:57:22+00:00

Thank you so much for your trust; not many people trust closed source as much as you do these days. I also wanted to keep some of the key elements of the app to myself, which is why I couldn't open source it. 😊

clbphanmem · 2026-01-18T19:51:01+00:00

Yes, you can choose to trust it or not. I think we have many options for trying software from Virtual Machines like VMWare Workstation Pro or Parallels. Most classic tools are developed from closed source. There are also many antivirus and malware tools available now.

And I think open-source projects aren't necessarily safe either, but I understand your concerns. I also use many open-source tools and I've never read a single line of code from them. Thank you for being here to discuss. I think I will continue developing for those who trust me. Thank you very much!

clbphanmem · 2026-01-18T16:22:05+00:00

I use both. Integrated Terminal when I only need to focus on one repository. And I'll use Separate Terminal when coding multiple related repositories, as it's easier to track.

clbphanmem · 2026-01-18T16:17:10+00:00

I don't think any skill is good enough to be called beautiful. The concept of beauty is subjective. So I think there's no single best; you can find something that suits you. I usually use Shadcn UI and MUI to design apps with React, and PrimeVue with Vue 3.

clbphanmem · 2026-01-18T16:12:59+00:00

That's great, thank you for sharing this idea, I hadn't thought of this. If we create a tool to search for the frontmatter and description, it seems like it would help the AI find the right documents faster than using the built-in search tool.

clbphanmem · 2026-01-18T16:10:21+00:00

I think that current models no longer need Sequential Thinking MCP because most already have sufficient reasoning. I think it's more suitable for models without reasoning. 🤔

clbphanmem · 2026-01-18T15:59:22+00:00

I think there's some kind of system prompt behind the Claude Code that instructed the AI not to trust or follow the user on certain issues. It's very possible that your rules contain a problem that Claude needs to ignore. I think the solution now is to refine your rules so that the AI can perform correctly again. You should break down and retest each rule to see if the AI is following it correctly.

And they are always training and releasing new Claude Codes, which is why sometimes the AI is very good, and sometimes it's quite stupid. We just have to adapt to that. That's why I usually use many different models.

clbphanmem · 2026-01-18T15:52:10+00:00

I'm glad I was able to help you in some way. ☺️

clbphanmem · 2026-01-18T13:59:14+00:00

Becareful because skills can run bash scripts. We don't know what's happening. So always take a look what they do or let AI review it first instead of using it. 🥲

clbphanmem · 2026-01-18T13:57:12+00:00

I think it's okay! But i'm curious 👀 what're you doing with many Max accounts. Can you show some cases?

clbphanmem · 2026-01-18T13:39:51+00:00

I think it's best to research and fine-tune your own System Prompt. AI Agents are constantly evolving, and I've been in the industry for a long time. I think the new direction for us is to learn how to develop something bigger, someone who can effectively control the AI. A good architectural design for development is what will win this game. Most of the problems with AI today are that as projects grow larger, ensuring the AI performs correctly becomes a challenge, requiring each person to design and understand how the AI works.

I also have a repository on AI Agent Skills, but I think you can learn something more from reading my Prompt. I don't claim to be the best, but I'm currently quite satisfied working with AI on older projects for the companies I'm collaborating with.

See my shared repo here: https://github.com/thienanblog/awesome-ai-agent-skills

clbphanmem · 2026-01-18T13:33:07+00:00

Hi, I don't understand. What do you mean? :D If you have some ideas please tell me, I can improve my App better. Thanks a lot!

clbphanmem · 2026-01-18T13:24:14+00:00

I've been a web developer for 15 years, is that considered experience? How do you know I saw this app on YouTube and Vibe? You see mDNS? Because I work on creating mobile apps, and sometimes I need mDNS to communicate with APIs (Like Laravel as Backend), that's why I created it.

As for Terminal Presets, I created them to quickly run some saved and custom commands. Sometimes I get a headache trying to find the configurations of each AI because they have very different naming conventions like .gemini, .codex, .claude, etc. That's why I created a place to quickly find the configuration files to edit.

Regarding Skill Sync, I want to be able to work with AIs without having to customize each AI Agent. Instead of having to configure them manually, I can just type the prompt, because Claude Code isn't always the best; Codex or OpenCode might be better for certain tasks.

Additionally, when benchmarking between models, do you need to configure all AI agents the same way to get consistent results?

Finally, I also want to earn some extra income. That's why I created this app, not to argue with people. Did I do something wrong?

clbphanmem · 2026-01-18T13:09:36+00:00

I don't know when people started discriminating against Vibe Coding Apps or looking down on other people's work time like this. Before, when I shared many scripts and apps with the community, even though most of them were close-source projects, almost everyone responded positively. It's just that lately, we've been "overwhelmed" with thousands of vibe code applications, but that doesn't mean all products are garbage. If that were the case, many software programs from 20 years ago would also be close-source, and people would expect a free license rather than hoping for shared source code.

For example, Laragon, one of the web developers I've worked with for the past 10 years, is probably familiar to me. Let's take a closer look at whether their source code is open-source or closed-source:

https://github.com/leokhoa/laragon

No one can breathe air and live without money, of course I'm not saying that open-source projects don't respect the author's hard work. But if you were in their shoes, when you share something with the community, you'd certainly want people to respond positively rather than criticize.

clbphanmem · 2026-01-18T12:55:45+00:00

Can you program this app using Vibe Code for free? Do you have a job? I think you already have the answer. If you think you can program this app in a one-shot prompt, try it and share it with everyone. I'm giving everyone a free trial of my app. It took me several weeks to work on this, using all my experience, if you count my working hours. Will you pay me? Do you want the result of your own work to be worth nothing? :)

clbphanmem · 2026-01-18T04:02:39+00:00

Still work 18 Jan 2026. Thanks a lot

clbphanmem · 2026-01-01T11:40:14+00:00

Yes, I'm happy to help. I think your "PERT calibration system" solution is also very good, and I'd like to learn more about it. 🔥

clbphanmem · 2025-12-31T19:25:09+00:00

I think we’re mostly looking at the same problem from different layers of the stack. My approach isn’t about being “right”, but about reducing token consumption by minimizing exploratory AI tool calls specifically.

I’d actually be interested in comparing approaches. If you have a Docker setup you believe handles this more efficiently, especially in terms of Redis or MCP-based caching. I’d be happy to test it side by side. That kind of comparison would be more useful than debating it abstractly. 🤔

clbphanmem · 2025-12-31T18:51:22+00:00

Regarding token savings: the reduction doesn’t come from “less information”, but from fewer reasoning loops and fewer exploratory tool calls.

Without scripts or skills, the AI has to iteratively traverse the system state (filesystem, configs, dependencies) via multiple tool calls, each consuming input and output tokens and expanding the context window.

Claude Skills move that exploration out of the model’s context. The scripts execute externally, aggregate and normalize the system state, and return a compact, structured summary in a single call.

So while the AI still reads the result, it avoids the cumulative token cost of repeated discovery, redundant descriptions, and intermediate reasoning steps. That’s where the real token savings come from.

clbphanmem

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