Where Is the Parser Registry Located in the Distilly Codebase?

The Distilly parser registry is located in tools/skill_presets.py, where the CHARACTER_PRESETS dictionary defines how each character family maps to its prompt bundle and parsing behavior.

Distilly uses a centralized parser registry to determine how different character families are interpreted and processed. This registry governs everything from prompt template selection to storage path resolution according to the titanwings/distilly source code. Understanding where this registry lives and how to interact with it is essential for extending Distilly's character-based skills or customizing parsing behavior.

Location of the Parser Registry in Distilly

The parser registry resides in tools/skill_presets.py on the dot-skill branch. This module contains the CHARACTER_PRESETS constant—a dictionary that registers every supported character preset including colleague, relationship, and celebrity.

The CHARACTER_PRESETS Dictionary

The CHARACTER_PRESETS dictionary serves as the single source of truth for character family definitions. Each entry maps a character key to metadata including display names and prompt bundle paths.

Registry Helper Functions

Several utility functions interact with this registry to resolve parsing behavior:

• get_character_preset – Retrieves preset configuration for a given character name
• normalize_character – Resolves user-provided aliases to canonical character names
• resolve_storage_root – Determines storage paths based on character family
• canonical_storage_root – Returns the standard storage location for a character type

How to Access and Use the Parser Registry

Developers interact with the Distilly parser registry through the helper functions exported from tools/skill_presets.py.

Retrieving Character Presets

To fetch configuration for a specific character family:

from tools.skill_presets import get_character_preset

preset = get_character_preset("celebrity")
print(preset["display_name"])   # → Celebrity

print(preset["prompt_bundle"])  # contains paths to the prompt templates

Resolving Storage Paths

The registry determines where skill artifacts are stored on the filesystem:

from tools.skill_presets import resolve_storage_root

storage_root = resolve_storage_root("relationship")
print(storage_root)   # → Path('skills/relationship')

Normalizing Character Aliases

User input often requires normalization against the registry to ensure consistent parsing:

from tools.skill_presets import normalize_character

print(normalize_character("ex"))          # → relationship

print(normalize_character("nuwa"))       # → celebrity

print(normalize_character(None))         # → colleague (default)

Related Files That Depend on the Parser Registry

The parser registry in tools/skill_presets.py supports several downstream modules that implement Distilly's skill management pipeline:

• tools/skill_writer.py – Uses the registry to create or update skill artifacts based on the selected character preset
• tools/version_manager.py – References the registry when handling versioned skill data via the --character argument

Summary

• The parser registry is located in tools/skill_presets.py on the dot-skill branch
• The CHARACTER_PRESETS dictionary contains all character family definitions and prompt bundle mappings
• Helper functions including get_character_preset, normalize_character, and resolve_storage_root provide the primary API for registry access
• Downstream tools skill_writer.py and version_manager.py depend on this registry for character-aware skill operations

Frequently Asked Questions

In which file is the Distilly parser registry defined?

The parser registry is defined in tools/skill_presets.py, specifically within the CHARACTER_PRESETS dictionary constant. This file contains the complete mapping of character families to their parsing configurations, display names, and prompt bundle paths.

How do I retrieve a character preset from the Distilly registry?

Import the get_character_preset function from tools/skill_presets.py and pass the character name as a string argument. This function queries the CHARACTER_PRESETS registry and returns a dictionary containing the display_name, prompt_bundle, and other configuration metadata for that character family.

What functions interact with the parser registry in Distilly?

The primary functions include get_character_preset for retrieving configurations, normalize_character for resolving aliases to canonical names, resolve_storage_root for determining skill storage paths, and canonical_storage_root for standard storage locations. All are exported from tools/skill_presets.py and operate against the central CHARACTER_PRESETS registry.

Which other modules reference the parser registry?

tools/skill_writer.py uses the registry when creating or updating skill artifacts to ensure correct prompt bundle selection, while tools/version_manager.py references it when processing versioned skill data with the --character argument. Both modules import utilities from tools/skill_presets.py to maintain consistent parsing behavior across the codebase.

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