Install
Terminal · npx$
npx skills add https://github.com/jeffallan/claude-skills --skill cli-developerWorks with Paperclip
How Cli Developer fits into a Paperclip company.
Cli Developer drops into any Paperclip agent that handles this kind of work. Assign it to a specialist inside a pre-configured PaperclipOrg company and the skill becomes available on every heartbeat — no prompt engineering, no tool wiring.
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SaaS FactoryPaired
Pre-configured AI company — 18 agents, 18 skills, one-time purchase.
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Explore packSource file
SKILL.md113 linesExpandCollapse
---name: cli-developerdescription: Use when building CLI tools, implementing argument parsing, or adding interactive prompts. Invoke for parsing flags and subcommands, displaying progress bars and spinners, generating bash/zsh/fish completion scripts, CLI design, shell completions, and cross-platform terminal applications using commander, click, typer, or cobra.license: MITmetadata: author: https://github.com/Jeffallan version: "1.1.0" domain: devops triggers: CLI, command-line, terminal app, argument parsing, shell completion, interactive prompt, progress bar, commander, click, typer, cobra role: specialist scope: implementation output-format: code related-skills: devops-engineer--- # CLI Developer ## Core Workflow 1. **Analyze UX** — Identify user workflows, command hierarchy, common tasks. Validate by listing all commands and their expected `--help` output before writing code.2. **Design commands** — Plan subcommands, flags, arguments, configuration. Confirm flag naming is consistent and no existing signatures are broken.3. **Implement** — Build with the appropriate CLI framework for the language (see Reference Guide below). After wiring up commands, run `<cli> --help` to verify help text renders correctly and `<cli> --version` to confirm version output.4. **Polish** — Add completions, help text, error messages, progress indicators. Verify TTY detection for color output and graceful SIGINT handling.5. **Test** — Run cross-platform smoke tests; benchmark startup time (target: <50ms). ## Reference Guide Load detailed guidance based on context: | Topic | Reference | Load When ||-------|-----------|-----------|| Design Patterns | `references/design-patterns.md` | Subcommands, flags, config, architecture || Node.js CLIs | `references/node-cli.md` | commander, yargs, inquirer, chalk || Python CLIs | `references/python-cli.md` | click, typer, argparse, rich || Go CLIs | `references/go-cli.md` | cobra, viper, bubbletea || UX Patterns | `references/ux-patterns.md` | Progress bars, colors, help text | ## Quick-Start Example ### Node.js (commander) ```js#!/usr/bin/env node// npm install commanderconst { program } = require('commander'); program .name('mytool') .description('Example CLI') .version('1.0.0'); program .command('greet <name>') .description('Greet a user') .option('-l, --loud', 'uppercase the greeting') .action((name, opts) => { const msg = `Hello, ${name}!`; console.log(opts.loud ? msg.toUpperCase() : msg); }); program.parse();``` For Python (click/typer) and Go (cobra) quick-start examples, see `references/python-cli.md` and `references/go-cli.md`. ## Constraints ### MUST DO- Keep startup time under 50ms- Provide clear, actionable error messages- Support `--help` and `--version` flags- Use consistent flag naming conventions- Handle SIGINT (Ctrl+C) gracefully- Validate user input early- Support both interactive and non-interactive modes- Test on Windows, macOS, and Linux ### MUST NOT DO - **Block on synchronous I/O unnecessarily** — use async reads or stream processing instead.- **Print to stdout when output will be piped** — write logs/diagnostics to stderr.- **Use colors when output is not a TTY** — detect before applying color: ```js // Node.js const useColor = process.stdout.isTTY; ``` ```python # Python import sys use_color = sys.stdout.isatty() ``` ```go // Go import "golang.org/x/term" useColor := term.IsTerminal(int(os.Stdout.Fd())) ```- **Break existing command signatures** — treat flag/subcommand renames as breaking changes.- **Require interactive input in CI/CD environments** — always provide non-interactive fallbacks via flags or env vars.- **Hardcode paths or platform-specific logic** — use `os.homedir()` / `os.UserHomeDir()` / `Path.home()` instead.- **Ship without shell completions** — all three frameworks above have built-in completion generation. ## Output Templates When implementing CLI features, provide:1. Command structure (main entry point, subcommands)2. Configuration handling (files, env vars, flags)3. Core implementation with error handling4. Shell completion scripts if applicable5. Brief explanation of UX decisions ## Knowledge Reference CLI frameworks (commander, yargs, oclif, click, typer, argparse, cobra, viper), terminal UI (chalk, inquirer, rich, bubbletea), testing (snapshot testing, E2E), distribution (npm, pip, homebrew, releases), performance optimization