Tools Reference — CLI Utilities

A comprehensive list of command-line tools that make your assistant more capable. Organized by category with install commands for every major platform.

Your assistant can only do what its environment allows. A well-equipped CLI means your assistant can process data, search codebases, interact with APIs, manage infrastructure, and automate workflows — all without leaving the terminal.

First Things First: Package Managers

Before installing anything else, you need a package manager. This is how your assistant will install tools on your behalf.

macOS — Homebrew

The standard. Almost everything in this guide installs through it.

# Install Homebrew
/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

# After install, follow the instructions it prints to add brew to your PATH
# Then verify:
brew --version

# Usage:
brew install <package>       # Install a package
brew upgrade <package>       # Update a package
brew list                    # See what's installed
brew search <term>           # Find packages

Windows — Three Options

winget (recommended — built into Windows 11):

# Already installed on Windows 11. Verify:
winget --version

# Usage:
winget install <package>
winget upgrade <package>
winget list
winget search <term>

Scoop (user-level, no admin needed — good for dev tools):

# Install Scoop
Set-ExecutionPolicy -ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned -Scope CurrentUser
irm get.scoop.sh | iex

# Usage:
scoop install <package>
scoop update <package>
scoop list
scoop search <term>

# Add the extras bucket for more packages:
scoop bucket add extras

Chocolatey (admin-level, broadest package library):

# Install Chocolatey (run as Administrator)
Set-ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Scope Process -Force
[System.Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol = [System.Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol -bor 3072
iex ((New-Object System.Net.WebClient).DownloadString('https://community.chocolatey.org/install.ps1'))

# Usage:
choco install <package>
choco upgrade <package>
choco list --local
choco search <term>

Which one? Use winget for common software (browsers, IDEs). Use Scoop for dev/CLI tools — it installs to userspace, doesn't pollute system paths, and is easiest for your assistant to work with. Use Chocolatey if Scoop doesn't have what you need.

Linux — Built-in

Your distro comes with one:

# Debian / Ubuntu
sudo apt update && sudo apt install <package>

# Fedora / RHEL
sudo dnf install <package>

# Arch Linux
sudo pacman -S <package>

Tier 1 — Install These First

These are the tools that make the biggest difference for an AI assistant. Install all of them.

jq — JSON Processing

Your assistant will encounter JSON constantly — API responses, config files, data exports. jq lets it slice, filter, and transform JSON from the command line.

# macOS
brew install jq

# Windows
scoop install jq          # or: winget install jqlang.jq

# Linux
sudo apt install jq       # or: sudo dnf install jq

# Examples:
echo '{"name":"Alice","role":"PM"}' | jq '.name'          # → "Alice"
cat data.json | jq '.users[] | select(.active==true)'     # Filter active users
curl -s api.example.com/data | jq '.results | length'     # Count results

ripgrep (rg) — Fast Code Search

2-5x faster than grep. Respects .gitignore. Your assistant uses this to search codebases.

# macOS
brew install ripgrep

# Windows
scoop install ripgrep     # or: winget install BurntSushi.ripgrep.MSVC

# Linux
sudo apt install ripgrep  # or: sudo dnf install ripgrep

# Examples:
rg "TODO" --type py                    # Search Python files for TODOs
rg "function.*export" --glob "*.ts"    # Search TypeScript exports
rg -l "API_KEY"                        # List files containing API_KEY

fd — Fast File Finder

Faster and simpler than find. Respects .gitignore. Pairs well with ripgrep.

# macOS
brew install fd

# Windows
scoop install fd          # or: winget install sharkdp.fd

# Linux
sudo apt install fd-find  # (binary is `fzf` on Debian/Ubuntu)

# Examples:
fd "\.py$"                    # Find all Python files
fd "config" --type f          # Find files with "config" in name
fd --extension md --changed-within 1d    # Markdown files changed today

git + gh — Version Control + GitHub CLI

Git is foundational. The GitHub CLI (gh) lets your assistant create PRs, manage issues, and interact with GitHub without leaving the terminal.

# macOS
brew install git gh

# Windows
scoop install git gh      # or: winget install Git.Git && winget install GitHub.cli

# Linux
sudo apt install git gh   # or: sudo dnf install git gh

# Authenticate GitHub CLI:
gh auth login

# Examples:
gh pr create --title "Fix auth bug" --body "..."
gh issue list --label "bug"
gh pr view 42
gh repo clone owner/repo

curl — HTTP Requests

Usually pre-installed. The universal tool for API calls, downloads, and web requests.

# macOS — usually pre-installed. Update with:
brew install curl

# Windows
scoop install curl        # or: winget install cURL.cURL

# Linux — usually pre-installed. Install with:
sudo apt install curl

tree — Directory Visualization

Shows directory structure. Essential for your assistant to understand project layouts.

# macOS
brew install tree

# Windows
scoop install tree

# Linux
sudo apt install tree

Tier 2 — High Value, Install When Relevant

yq — YAML Processing

Like jq but for YAML. If you work with Kubernetes, Docker Compose, CI configs, or any YAML-heavy stack.

# macOS
brew install yq

# Windows
scoop install yq          # or: winget install MikeFarah.yq

# Linux
sudo apt install yq       # or: snap install yq

bat — Better File Viewing

cat with syntax highlighting and line numbers. Makes code output more readable.

# macOS
brew install bat

# Windows
scoop install bat         # or: winget install sharkdp.bat

# Linux
sudo apt install bat      # (binary may be `batcat` on Debian/Ubuntu)

httpie / xh — Friendly HTTP Client

Cleaner syntax than curl for API testing. xh is the faster Rust rewrite.

# macOS
brew install httpie       # or: brew install xh

# Windows
scoop install httpie      # or: scoop install xh

# Linux
sudo apt install httpie   # or: pip install httpie

# Example (httpie syntax, works with both):
http GET api.example.com/users Authorization:"Bearer token123"
http POST api.example.com/data name=test value=42

pandoc — Document Conversion

Converts between Markdown, HTML, PDF, Word, LaTeX, and more. Useful if your assistant needs to generate or transform documentation.

# macOS
brew install pandoc

# Windows
scoop install pandoc      # or: winget install JohnMacFarlane.Pandoc

# Linux
sudo apt install pandoc

csvkit — CSV/Tabular Data Processing

Process CSV files, run SQL queries on CSVs, convert between formats. Useful if your work involves data.

# All platforms (requires Python):
pip install csvkit        # or: uv pip install csvkit

# Examples:
csvstat data.csv                              # Summary statistics
csvsql --query "SELECT * FROM data WHERE amount > 100" data.csv
csvjoin -c id file1.csv file2.csv             # Join CSVs
in2csv data.xlsx > data.csv                   # Excel to CSV

shellcheck — Shell Script Linter

Validates bash/shell scripts before your assistant runs them. Catches bugs early.

# macOS
brew install shellcheck

# Windows
scoop install shellcheck

# Linux
sudo apt install shellcheck

Tier 3 — Role-Specific Tools

Install based on your stack and role. Don't install everything — pick what you need.

Language Runtimes and Package Managers

Node.js + npm:

# macOS
brew install node

# Windows
scoop install nodejs      # or: winget install OpenJS.NodeJS

# Linux
# Recommended: use nvm (Node Version Manager)
curl -o- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/nvm-sh/nvm/v0.40.0/install.sh | bash
nvm install --lts

Python 3 + uv (ultra-fast package manager):

# macOS
brew install python3
curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh

# Windows
winget install Python.Python.3
powershell -c "irm https://astral.sh/uv/install.ps1 | iex"

# Linux
sudo apt install python3 python3-pip
curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh

uv replaces pip, virtualenv, pyenv, and pipx. It's 10-100x faster than pip for dependency resolution. Your assistant should prefer uv pip install over pip install.

Database CLIs

Install the ones matching your stack:

# PostgreSQL
brew install postgresql               # macOS
scoop install postgresql              # Windows
sudo apt install postgresql-client    # Linux

# MySQL
brew install mysql-client             # macOS
scoop install mysql                   # Windows
sudo apt install mysql-client         # Linux

# SQLite (usually pre-installed)
brew install sqlite                   # macOS if missing

# Redis
brew install redis                    # macOS
scoop install redis                   # Windows
sudo apt install redis-tools          # Linux

# MongoDB
npm install -g mongosh               # All platforms

Cloud CLIs

Install for your cloud provider:

# AWS
brew install awscli                   # macOS
scoop install aws                     # Windows
# Linux: curl "https://awscli.amazonaws.com/awscli-exe-linux-x86_64.zip" -o "awscliv2.zip"

# Google Cloud
brew install google-cloud-sdk         # macOS
# Windows/Linux: https://cloud.google.com/sdk/docs/install

# Azure
brew install azure-cli                # macOS
scoop install azure-cli               # Windows
# Linux: curl -sL https://aka.ms/InstallAzureCLIDeb | sudo bash

Container and Orchestration

# Docker
brew install docker                   # macOS (or Docker Desktop)
# Windows: Docker Desktop installer
sudo apt install docker.io            # Linux

# Kubernetes
brew install kubectl                  # macOS
scoop install kubectl                 # Windows
sudo apt install kubectl              # Linux (or snap install kubectl)

# Helm (Kubernetes package manager)
brew install helm                     # macOS
scoop install helm                    # Windows
sudo apt install helm                 # Linux (or snap install helm)

Git Enhancements

# delta — syntax-highlighted diffs
brew install git-delta                # macOS
scoop install delta                   # Windows
# Linux: download from GitHub releases

# lazygit — terminal UI for git
brew install lazygit                  # macOS
scoop install lazygit                 # Windows
sudo apt install lazygit              # Linux

# glab — GitLab CLI (if you use GitLab instead of GitHub)
brew install glab                     # macOS
scoop install glab                    # Windows
sudo apt install glab                 # Linux

System Monitoring

# htop — interactive process viewer
brew install htop                     # macOS
scoop install htop                    # Windows
sudo apt install htop                 # Linux

# ncdu — disk usage analyzer
brew install ncdu                     # macOS
scoop install ncdu                    # Windows
sudo apt install ncdu                 # Linux

# duf — disk usage overview
brew install duf                      # macOS
scoop install duf                     # Windows
sudo apt install duf                  # Linux

Networking

# nmap — network scanner
brew install nmap                     # macOS
scoop install nmap                    # Windows
sudo apt install nmap                 # Linux

# mtr — network diagnostics (traceroute + ping)
brew install mtr                      # macOS
sudo apt install mtr                  # Linux

Media Processing

# ffmpeg — video/audio processing
brew install ffmpeg                   # macOS
scoop install ffmpeg                  # Windows
sudo apt install ffmpeg               # Linux

# imagemagick — image processing
brew install imagemagick              # macOS
scoop install imagemagick             # Windows
sudo apt install imagemagick          # Linux

Security and Encryption

# age — modern file encryption
brew install age                      # macOS
scoop install age                     # Windows
sudo apt install age                  # Linux

# pass — CLI password manager (uses GPG)
brew install pass                     # macOS
scoop install pass                    # Windows
sudo apt install pass                 # Linux

Quick Install Scripts

Copy-paste these to get set up fast. Each one installs a package manager and the Tier 1 tools.

macOS Quick Start

# Install Homebrew
/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

# Install Tier 1 tools
brew install jq ripgrep fd git gh tree curl

# Optional Tier 2
brew install yq bat httpie pandoc shellcheck

# Verify
jq --version && rg --version && fd --version && gh --version && tree --version

Windows Quick Start (Scoop)

# Install Scoop
Set-ExecutionPolicy -ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned -Scope CurrentUser
irm get.scoop.sh | iex

# Install Tier 1 tools
scoop install jq ripgrep fd git gh tree curl

# Optional Tier 2
scoop install yq bat xh pandoc shellcheck

# Verify
jq --version; rg --version; fd --version; gh --version; tree --version

Linux (Debian/Ubuntu) Quick Start

sudo apt update

# Install Tier 1 tools
sudo apt install -y jq ripgrep fd-find git tree curl

# Install GitHub CLI
sudo apt install -y gh    # Or: https://github.com/cli/cli/blob/trunk/docs/install_linux.md

# Optional Tier 2
sudo apt install -y bat pandoc shellcheck
pip install httpie csvkit

# Verify
jq --version && rg --version && gh --version && tree --version

Letting Your Assistant Install Tools

Once you have a package manager, your assistant can install tools for you. You'll want to decide on your autonomy level:

Option A — Assistant installs freely: Add your package manager to the assistant's allowed commands. It installs what it needs.

Option B — Assistant suggests, you approve: The assistant tells you what it wants to install and why. You run the command.

Option C — Pre-install everything: Use the quick install scripts above. The assistant works with what's there.

Most people start with Option B and move to Option A as trust builds. Configure this in your assistant's autonomy rules (AGENTS.md).

This is a reference document. You don't need everything here. Install Tier 1 first, add Tier 2 as needed, pick from Tier 3 based on your stack. Your assistant will tell you when it needs a tool it doesn't have.

Role Playbook

MCP Servers

Tools Reference — CLI Utilities

A comprehensive list of command-line tools that make your assistant more capable. Organized by category with install commands for every major platform.

First Things First: Package Managers

Before installing anything else, you need a package manager. This is how your assistant will install tools on your behalf.

macOS — Homebrew

The standard. Almost everything in this guide installs through it.

# Install Homebrew
/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

# After install, follow the instructions it prints to add brew to your PATH
# Then verify:
brew --version

# Usage:
brew install <package>       # Install a package
brew upgrade <package>       # Update a package
brew list                    # See what's installed
brew search <term>           # Find packages

Windows — Three Options

winget (recommended — built into Windows 11):

# Already installed on Windows 11. Verify:
winget --version

# Usage:
winget install <package>
winget upgrade <package>
winget list
winget search <term>

Scoop (user-level, no admin needed — good for dev tools):

# Install Scoop
Set-ExecutionPolicy -ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned -Scope CurrentUser
irm get.scoop.sh | iex

# Usage:
scoop install <package>
scoop update <package>
scoop list
scoop search <term>

# Add the extras bucket for more packages:
scoop bucket add extras

Chocolatey (admin-level, broadest package library):

# Install Chocolatey (run as Administrator)
Set-ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Scope Process -Force
[System.Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol = [System.Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol -bor 3072
iex ((New-Object System.Net.WebClient).DownloadString('https://community.chocolatey.org/install.ps1'))

# Usage:
choco install <package>
choco upgrade <package>
choco list --local
choco search <term>

Linux — Built-in

Your distro comes with one:

# Debian / Ubuntu
sudo apt update && sudo apt install <package>

# Fedora / RHEL
sudo dnf install <package>

# Arch Linux
sudo pacman -S <package>

Tier 1 — Install These First

These are the tools that make the biggest difference for an AI assistant. Install all of them.

jq — JSON Processing

Your assistant will encounter JSON constantly — API responses, config files, data exports. jq lets it slice, filter, and transform JSON from the command line.

# macOS
brew install jq

# Windows
scoop install jq          # or: winget install jqlang.jq

# Linux
sudo apt install jq       # or: sudo dnf install jq

# Examples:
echo '{"name":"Alice","role":"PM"}' | jq '.name'          # → "Alice"
cat data.json | jq '.users[] | select(.active==true)'     # Filter active users
curl -s api.example.com/data | jq '.results | length'     # Count results

ripgrep (rg) — Fast Code Search

2-5x faster than grep. Respects .gitignore. Your assistant uses this to search codebases.

# macOS
brew install ripgrep

# Windows
scoop install ripgrep     # or: winget install BurntSushi.ripgrep.MSVC

# Linux
sudo apt install ripgrep  # or: sudo dnf install ripgrep

# Examples:
rg "TODO" --type py                    # Search Python files for TODOs
rg "function.*export" --glob "*.ts"    # Search TypeScript exports
rg -l "API_KEY"                        # List files containing API_KEY

fd — Fast File Finder

Faster and simpler than find. Respects .gitignore. Pairs well with ripgrep.

# macOS
brew install fd

# Windows
scoop install fd          # or: winget install sharkdp.fd

# Linux
sudo apt install fd-find  # (binary is `fzf` on Debian/Ubuntu)

# Examples:
fd "\.py$"                    # Find all Python files
fd "config" --type f          # Find files with "config" in name
fd --extension md --changed-within 1d    # Markdown files changed today

git + gh — Version Control + GitHub CLI

Git is foundational. The GitHub CLI (gh) lets your assistant create PRs, manage issues, and interact with GitHub without leaving the terminal.

# macOS
brew install git gh

# Windows
scoop install git gh      # or: winget install Git.Git && winget install GitHub.cli

# Linux
sudo apt install git gh   # or: sudo dnf install git gh

# Authenticate GitHub CLI:
gh auth login

# Examples:
gh pr create --title "Fix auth bug" --body "..."
gh issue list --label "bug"
gh pr view 42
gh repo clone owner/repo

curl — HTTP Requests

Usually pre-installed. The universal tool for API calls, downloads, and web requests.

# macOS — usually pre-installed. Update with:
brew install curl

# Windows
scoop install curl        # or: winget install cURL.cURL

# Linux — usually pre-installed. Install with:
sudo apt install curl

tree — Directory Visualization

Shows directory structure. Essential for your assistant to understand project layouts.

# macOS
brew install tree

# Windows
scoop install tree

# Linux
sudo apt install tree

Tier 2 — High Value, Install When Relevant

yq — YAML Processing

Like jq but for YAML. If you work with Kubernetes, Docker Compose, CI configs, or any YAML-heavy stack.

# macOS
brew install yq

# Windows
scoop install yq          # or: winget install MikeFarah.yq

# Linux
sudo apt install yq       # or: snap install yq

bat — Better File Viewing

cat with syntax highlighting and line numbers. Makes code output more readable.

# macOS
brew install bat

# Windows
scoop install bat         # or: winget install sharkdp.bat

# Linux
sudo apt install bat      # (binary may be `batcat` on Debian/Ubuntu)

httpie / xh — Friendly HTTP Client

Cleaner syntax than curl for API testing. xh is the faster Rust rewrite.

# macOS
brew install httpie       # or: brew install xh

# Windows
scoop install httpie      # or: scoop install xh

# Linux
sudo apt install httpie   # or: pip install httpie

# Example (httpie syntax, works with both):
http GET api.example.com/users Authorization:"Bearer token123"
http POST api.example.com/data name=test value=42

pandoc — Document Conversion

Converts between Markdown, HTML, PDF, Word, LaTeX, and more. Useful if your assistant needs to generate or transform documentation.

# macOS
brew install pandoc

# Windows
scoop install pandoc      # or: winget install JohnMacFarlane.Pandoc

# Linux
sudo apt install pandoc

csvkit — CSV/Tabular Data Processing

Process CSV files, run SQL queries on CSVs, convert between formats. Useful if your work involves data.

# All platforms (requires Python):
pip install csvkit        # or: uv pip install csvkit

# Examples:
csvstat data.csv                              # Summary statistics
csvsql --query "SELECT * FROM data WHERE amount > 100" data.csv
csvjoin -c id file1.csv file2.csv             # Join CSVs
in2csv data.xlsx > data.csv                   # Excel to CSV

shellcheck — Shell Script Linter

Validates bash/shell scripts before your assistant runs them. Catches bugs early.

# macOS
brew install shellcheck

# Windows
scoop install shellcheck

# Linux
sudo apt install shellcheck

Tier 3 — Role-Specific Tools

Install based on your stack and role. Don't install everything — pick what you need.

Language Runtimes and Package Managers

Node.js + npm:

# macOS
brew install node

# Windows
scoop install nodejs      # or: winget install OpenJS.NodeJS

# Linux
# Recommended: use nvm (Node Version Manager)
curl -o- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/nvm-sh/nvm/v0.40.0/install.sh | bash
nvm install --lts

Python 3 + uv (ultra-fast package manager):

# macOS
brew install python3
curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh

# Windows
winget install Python.Python.3
powershell -c "irm https://astral.sh/uv/install.ps1 | iex"

# Linux
sudo apt install python3 python3-pip
curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh

uv replaces pip, virtualenv, pyenv, and pipx. It's 10-100x faster than pip for dependency resolution. Your assistant should prefer uv pip install over pip install.

Database CLIs

Install the ones matching your stack:

# PostgreSQL
brew install postgresql               # macOS
scoop install postgresql              # Windows
sudo apt install postgresql-client    # Linux

# MySQL
brew install mysql-client             # macOS
scoop install mysql                   # Windows
sudo apt install mysql-client         # Linux

# SQLite (usually pre-installed)
brew install sqlite                   # macOS if missing

# Redis
brew install redis                    # macOS
scoop install redis                   # Windows
sudo apt install redis-tools          # Linux

# MongoDB
npm install -g mongosh               # All platforms

Cloud CLIs

Install for your cloud provider:

# AWS
brew install awscli                   # macOS
scoop install aws                     # Windows
# Linux: curl "https://awscli.amazonaws.com/awscli-exe-linux-x86_64.zip" -o "awscliv2.zip"

# Google Cloud
brew install google-cloud-sdk         # macOS
# Windows/Linux: https://cloud.google.com/sdk/docs/install

# Azure
brew install azure-cli                # macOS
scoop install azure-cli               # Windows
# Linux: curl -sL https://aka.ms/InstallAzureCLIDeb | sudo bash

Container and Orchestration

# Docker
brew install docker                   # macOS (or Docker Desktop)
# Windows: Docker Desktop installer
sudo apt install docker.io            # Linux

# Kubernetes
brew install kubectl                  # macOS
scoop install kubectl                 # Windows
sudo apt install kubectl              # Linux (or snap install kubectl)

# Helm (Kubernetes package manager)
brew install helm                     # macOS
scoop install helm                    # Windows
sudo apt install helm                 # Linux (or snap install helm)

Git Enhancements

# delta — syntax-highlighted diffs
brew install git-delta                # macOS
scoop install delta                   # Windows
# Linux: download from GitHub releases

# lazygit — terminal UI for git
brew install lazygit                  # macOS
scoop install lazygit                 # Windows
sudo apt install lazygit              # Linux

# glab — GitLab CLI (if you use GitLab instead of GitHub)
brew install glab                     # macOS
scoop install glab                    # Windows
sudo apt install glab                 # Linux

System Monitoring

# htop — interactive process viewer
brew install htop                     # macOS
scoop install htop                    # Windows
sudo apt install htop                 # Linux

# ncdu — disk usage analyzer
brew install ncdu                     # macOS
scoop install ncdu                    # Windows
sudo apt install ncdu                 # Linux

# duf — disk usage overview
brew install duf                      # macOS
scoop install duf                     # Windows
sudo apt install duf                  # Linux

Networking

# nmap — network scanner
brew install nmap                     # macOS
scoop install nmap                    # Windows
sudo apt install nmap                 # Linux

# mtr — network diagnostics (traceroute + ping)
brew install mtr                      # macOS
sudo apt install mtr                  # Linux

Media Processing

# ffmpeg — video/audio processing
brew install ffmpeg                   # macOS
scoop install ffmpeg                  # Windows
sudo apt install ffmpeg               # Linux

# imagemagick — image processing
brew install imagemagick              # macOS
scoop install imagemagick             # Windows
sudo apt install imagemagick          # Linux

Security and Encryption

# age — modern file encryption
brew install age                      # macOS
scoop install age                     # Windows
sudo apt install age                  # Linux

# pass — CLI password manager (uses GPG)
brew install pass                     # macOS
scoop install pass                    # Windows
sudo apt install pass                 # Linux

Quick Install Scripts

Copy-paste these to get set up fast. Each one installs a package manager and the Tier 1 tools.

macOS Quick Start

# Install Homebrew
/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

# Install Tier 1 tools
brew install jq ripgrep fd git gh tree curl

# Optional Tier 2
brew install yq bat httpie pandoc shellcheck

# Verify
jq --version && rg --version && fd --version && gh --version && tree --version

Windows Quick Start (Scoop)

# Install Scoop
Set-ExecutionPolicy -ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned -Scope CurrentUser
irm get.scoop.sh | iex

# Install Tier 1 tools
scoop install jq ripgrep fd git gh tree curl

# Optional Tier 2
scoop install yq bat xh pandoc shellcheck

# Verify
jq --version; rg --version; fd --version; gh --version; tree --version

Linux (Debian/Ubuntu) Quick Start

sudo apt update

# Install Tier 1 tools
sudo apt install -y jq ripgrep fd-find git tree curl

# Install GitHub CLI
sudo apt install -y gh    # Or: https://github.com/cli/cli/blob/trunk/docs/install_linux.md

# Optional Tier 2
sudo apt install -y bat pandoc shellcheck
pip install httpie csvkit

# Verify
jq --version && rg --version && gh --version && tree --version

Letting Your Assistant Install Tools

Once you have a package manager, your assistant can install tools for you. You'll want to decide on your autonomy level:

Option A — Assistant installs freely: Add your package manager to the assistant's allowed commands. It installs what it needs.

Option B — Assistant suggests, you approve: The assistant tells you what it wants to install and why. You run the command.

Option C — Pre-install everything: Use the quick install scripts above. The assistant works with what's there.

Most people start with Option B and move to Option A as trust builds. Configure this in your assistant's autonomy rules (AGENTS.md).

Role Playbook

MCP Servers

Let's talk.

Have an idea, project, or challenge you’d like to explore? We’d love to hear about it.

info@airtightdesign.com

Phone

(404) 594-5520

Phone

(404) 594-5520

Address

1777 Ellsworth Industrial Blvd NW
Suite B
Atlanta, GA 30318

Address

1777 Ellsworth Industrial Blvd NW
Suite B
Atlanta, GA 30318

Sitemap

Bob Builder Kit

Tools Reference — CLI Utilities

First Things First: Package Managers

macOS — Homebrew

Windows — Three Options

Linux — Built-in

Tier 1 — Install These First

jq — JSON Processing

ripgrep (rg) — Fast Code Search

fd — Fast File Finder

git + gh — Version Control + GitHub CLI

curl — HTTP Requests

tree — Directory Visualization

Tier 2 — High Value, Install When Relevant

yq — YAML Processing

bat — Better File Viewing

httpie / xh — Friendly HTTP Client

pandoc — Document Conversion

csvkit — CSV/Tabular Data Processing

shellcheck — Shell Script Linter

Tier 3 — Role-Specific Tools

Language Runtimes and Package Managers

Database CLIs

Cloud CLIs

Container and Orchestration

Git Enhancements

System Monitoring

Networking

Media Processing

Security and Encryption

Quick Install Scripts

macOS Quick Start

Windows Quick Start (Scoop)

Linux (Debian/Ubuntu) Quick Start

Letting Your Assistant Install Tools

Tools Reference — CLI Utilities

First Things First: Package Managers

macOS — Homebrew

Windows — Three Options

Linux — Built-in

Tier 1 — Install These First

jq — JSON Processing

ripgrep (rg) — Fast Code Search

fd — Fast File Finder

git + gh — Version Control + GitHub CLI

curl — HTTP Requests

tree — Directory Visualization

Tier 2 — High Value, Install When Relevant

yq — YAML Processing

bat — Better File Viewing

httpie / xh — Friendly HTTP Client

pandoc — Document Conversion

csvkit — CSV/Tabular Data Processing

shellcheck — Shell Script Linter

Tier 3 — Role-Specific Tools

Language Runtimes and Package Managers

Database CLIs

Cloud CLIs

Container and Orchestration

Git Enhancements

System Monitoring

Networking

Media Processing

Security and Encryption

Quick Install Scripts

macOS Quick Start

Windows Quick Start (Scoop)

Linux (Debian/Ubuntu) Quick Start

Letting Your Assistant Install Tools

Let's talk.