# Workbench

The private engineering workspace I made for myself, with a public template meant to become someone else’s.

Author: Joshua Palamuttam
Published: 2026-07-10
Type: Tool
Role: Creator and maintainer
Period: 2025–present
Tags: agents, developer-tools, open-source
Canonical page: https://www.joshuapalamuttam.com/built/workbench/

## Links

- [View the public template on GitHub](https://github.com/Joshua-Palamuttam/workbench-template)

Workbench started because managing agent-assisted work across several repositories had
become ridiculous.

Every task needed its own worktree. Reviews needed isolated checkouts. Different
repositories needed different skills. I was spending too much time managing the system
that was supposed to help me work.

## The version that tried to work for everyone

My first attempt tried to be universal. I wanted it to work across Mac and Windows,
then chose Bash as the foundation for reasons I can no longer defend. Other people
tried it, ran into problems, and made the weakness of that idea obvious.

Eventually I realized that Workbench did not need to work exactly the same way for
everyone. It needed to work well for me.

## Make it mine first

I rebuilt it around the way I actually work. Worktrees, isolated reviews,
repository-specific skills, durable context, and daily and weekly planning each found
a place. It kept expanding because I kept using it and discovering the next piece I
needed.

The working repository is private because it contains my real workspace and my
particular habits.

## Then make it adaptable

`workbench-template` is the public starting point. It shares the useful structure
without pretending that someone else should work exactly as I do.

Someone who adopted it made skills the center of their version and connected them to
the services that shape their day. Their Workbench eventually looked nothing like
mine. That is the point.

Make it mine, then template it so other people can make theirs.