One-Line Summary: Install your CLI globally with npm link, then explore extensions — conversation history, config files, and publishing to npm.

Prerequisites: All previous steps completed

Right now you run your tool with node dist/index.js. Let's make it a real command. From your project directory:

npx tsc
npm link

That's it. Now ask works from anywhere on your system:

ask "What is the CAP theorem?"
ask explain ~/.bashrc
ask cmd "find all node_modules folders and show their sizes"
echo "hello world" | ask "translate to French"

To unlink later:

npm unlink -g ask-cli

What You Built

You now have a fully functional AI-powered CLI tool with four capabilities:

CommandWhat It Does
ask "question"Ask Claude anything from the terminal
ask explain <file>Read a file and get a structured explanation
ask cmd "description"Generate shell commands from plain English
cat file | ask "prompt"Pipe any content into Claude for analysis

All responses stream in real time. The tool composes with the Unix pipeline. It handles errors gracefully and shows loading spinners for feedback.

Extension Ideas

Here are concrete ways to keep building.

Add Conversation History

Store messages in a JSON file so Claude remembers context across multiple calls:

// src/history.ts
// ------------------------------------------
// Simple conversation history stored in
// ~/.ask-cli/history.json
// ------------------------------------------
 
import * as fs from 'fs';
import * as path from 'path';
import * as os from 'os';
 
interface Message {
  role: 'user' | 'assistant';
  content: string;
}
 
const HISTORY_DIR = path.join(os.homedir(), '.ask-cli');
const HISTORY_FILE = path.join(HISTORY_DIR, 'history.json');
 
export function loadHistory(): Message[] {
  if (!fs.existsSync(HISTORY_FILE)) return [];
  const raw = fs.readFileSync(HISTORY_FILE, 'utf-8');
  return JSON.parse(raw);
}
 
export function saveHistory(messages: Message[]): void {
  if (!fs.existsSync(HISTORY_DIR)) {
    fs.mkdirSync(HISTORY_DIR, { recursive: true });
  }
  // ------------------------------------------
  // Keep only the last 20 messages to stay
  // within context limits
  // ------------------------------------------
  const trimmed = messages.slice(-20);
  fs.writeFileSync(HISTORY_FILE, JSON.stringify(trimmed, null, 2));
}
 
export function clearHistory(): void {
  if (fs.existsSync(HISTORY_FILE)) {
    fs.unlinkSync(HISTORY_FILE);
  }
}

Then pass the history array as the messages parameter to the Anthropic SDK. Add ask --clear to reset it.

Add a Config File

Let users customize the model, max tokens, and system prompt:

// ~/.ask-cli/config.json
{
  "model": "claude-sonnet-4-20250514",
  "maxTokens": 2048,
  "systemPrompt": "You are a senior developer. Be concise."
}

Load it at startup and merge with defaults:

// src/config.ts
// ------------------------------------------
// User configuration — loaded from
// ~/.ask-cli/config.json
// ------------------------------------------
 
import * as fs from 'fs';
import * as path from 'path';
import * as os from 'os';
 
interface Config {
  model: string;
  maxTokens: number;
  systemPrompt?: string;
}
 
const defaults: Config = {
  model: 'claude-sonnet-4-20250514',
  maxTokens: 1024,
};
 
export function loadConfig(): Config {
  const configPath = path.join(os.homedir(), '.ask-cli', 'config.json');
 
  if (!fs.existsSync(configPath)) return defaults;
 
  const raw = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync(configPath, 'utf-8'));
  return { ...defaults, ...raw };
}

Publish to npm

When your tool is ready to share:

  1. Pick a unique name (check npmjs.com for availability)
  2. Update package.json with your name, description, and repository
  3. Add a .npmignore file to exclude src/ and keep only dist/
  4. Publish:
npm login
npm publish

Then anyone can install it with:

npm install -g your-cli-name

More Ideas

  • ask review — Run on a git diff to get a code review
  • ask test — Generate unit tests for a file
  • ask --model — Flag to switch between Claude models
  • ask --system — Flag to set a custom system prompt
  • Interactive mode — ask -i opens a REPL for back-and-forth conversation

You have the foundation. Every feature from here is just a new subcommand and a well-crafted prompt. Build what you need, and make the terminal smarter.

← Pipe and Stdin