# pi: prompt template or skill? > Source: > Published: 2026-08-24 23:13:46+00:00 ♠ **Problem statement**: I often type `commit (only) what you changed` in coding agent harnesses. Can I make an abbreviation out of it? [Pi](https://pi.dev/) turns a Markdown file in `~/.pi/agent/prompts/` into a /slash command. This one gives me `/commit` : ``` --- description: Commit files changed in this turn without pushing --- Commit what you changed (only). DO NOT push. % find ~/.pi/agent/prompts -maxdepth 1 -type f -print -exec sh -c 'printf "%s\n" "--- $1"; cat "$1"' _ {} \; /Users/thiago.perrotta/.pi/agent/prompts/commit.md --- /Users/thiago.perrotta/.pi/agent/prompts/commit.md --- description: Commit files changed in this turn without pushing --- Commit what you changed (only). DO NOT push. ``` In Pi, a [prompt template](https://pi.dev/docs/latest/prompt-templates) is fixed prompt expansion. It is right for a short, stable request: Prompt templates are Markdown snippets that expand into full prompts. Type /name in the editor to invoke a template, where name is the filename without .md. A [skill](https://agentskills.io/home) is a capability package. Its description is available at startup, but Pi loads its [ SKILL.md](https://pi.dev/docs/latest/skills) only when task matches or I run `/skill:name` . A skill can carry scripts, references, setup, and a workflow that branches on state:Skills are self-contained capability packages that the agent loads on-demand. A skill provides specialized workflows, setup instructions, helper scripts, and reference documentation for specific tasks. A commit flow with checks, generated files, partial staging rules, or project specific policy deserves a skill. This one is a couple of words and one constraint, so I choose to keep it simple. ∎ — § — Reply via [email](mailto:serendipity@perrotta.dev?subject=Reply to: pi: prompt template or skill?)