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Create a shared shell-and-CLI-tools skill for the team #1

@turbomam

Description

@turbomam

Context

We just created a shell guide for the auto-term-catalog repo (CultureBotAI/auto-term-catalog#5) that covers:

  • How to physically open a terminal on macOS and Windows
  • Prerequisites check (git, python, grep)
  • GitHub Desktop vs Git for Windows (common gotcha -- GH Desktop doesn't put grep on PATH)
  • When to use PowerShell vs Git Bash on Windows
  • grep basics with examples from our data
  • Navigating to project files (cd, drag-and-drop tricks)
  • Claude Code CLI as a shell tutor (vs crowded IDE agent panels)
  • Windows troubleshooting (PATH issues, python3 vs python, Node.js)

This came out of debugging a ghost row bug where the fix was a one-liner but finding it required grep/awk skills that not everyone on the team has yet.

Proposal

Package this content as a reusable skill that all CultureBotAI repos can reference. Options:

  1. A docs/ directory in this .github repo -- automatically visible org-wide, lowest friction
  2. A skill in berkeleybop/bbop-skills -- sits alongside the existing github-repo-skill, reaches the broader BBOP group
  3. Both -- a quick-start doc here in .github that links to a fuller skill in bbop-skills

The content should cover the practical "how do I open a terminal and grep through a TSV" level, not assume prior shell experience. Our team includes undergrads from CS programs where shell usage isn't necessarily part of the curriculum.

What the skill would contain

  • Terminal setup per OS (macOS: Spotlight -> Terminal; Windows: Win key -> Terminal, with Git for Windows prereq)
  • The GitHub Desktop vs Git for Windows distinction
  • PowerShell vs Git Bash: when to switch
  • Core commands: grep, head, wc, awk (with real examples from our KG/ontology data)
  • File navigation (cd, pwd, ls, drag-and-drop tricks)
  • Claude Code CLI setup and usage as a learning tool
  • Links to KG-Microbe-search#8 for broader repo conventions

Related

cc @realmarcin @lukewangCS121

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