Agent skill
help-text-formatter
Generate formatted help text with examples, descriptions, sections, and consistent styling for CLI applications.
Install this agent skill to your Project
npx add-skill https://github.com/a5c-ai/babysitter/tree/main/library/specializations/cli-mcp-development/skills/help-text-formatter
SKILL.md
Help Text Formatter
Generate formatted, user-friendly help text for CLI applications.
Capabilities
- Generate structured help text layouts
- Create command examples with descriptions
- Format options and arguments sections
- Implement custom help formatters
- Add color and styling support
- Generate man page compatible output
Usage
Invoke this skill when you need to:
- Create consistent help text formatting
- Add examples to command help
- Implement custom help renderers
- Generate documentation from help text
Inputs
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| language | string | Yes | Target language (typescript, python, go) |
| commands | array | Yes | Command definitions with help text |
| styling | object | No | Color and formatting options |
Command Structure
{
"commands": [
{
"name": "deploy",
"description": "Deploy application to target environment",
"longDescription": "Deploy the application with optional configuration...",
"arguments": [
{ "name": "service", "description": "Service to deploy" }
],
"options": [
{ "flags": "-e, --env", "description": "Target environment" }
],
"examples": [
{ "command": "deploy api -e production", "description": "Deploy API to production" }
]
}
]
}
Generated Patterns
TypeScript Help Formatter
import chalk from 'chalk';
interface HelpSection {
title: string;
content: string | string[];
}
export function formatHelp(command: CommandDefinition): string {
const sections: HelpSection[] = [];
// Description
sections.push({
title: '',
content: command.description,
});
// Usage
sections.push({
title: 'Usage',
content: ` $ ${command.name} ${formatUsage(command)}`,
});
// Arguments
if (command.arguments?.length) {
sections.push({
title: 'Arguments',
content: command.arguments.map(arg =>
` ${chalk.cyan(arg.name.padEnd(20))} ${arg.description}`
),
});
}
// Options
if (command.options?.length) {
sections.push({
title: 'Options',
content: command.options.map(opt =>
` ${chalk.cyan(opt.flags.padEnd(20))} ${opt.description}`
),
});
}
// Examples
if (command.examples?.length) {
sections.push({
title: 'Examples',
content: command.examples.map(ex =>
` ${chalk.dim('$')} ${ex.command}\n ${chalk.dim(ex.description)}`
),
});
}
return renderSections(sections);
}
function renderSections(sections: HelpSection[]): string {
return sections.map(section => {
const title = section.title
? chalk.bold.underline(section.title) + '\n\n'
: '';
const content = Array.isArray(section.content)
? section.content.join('\n')
: section.content;
return title + content;
}).join('\n\n');
}
Python Help Formatter
from typing import List, Optional
import textwrap
class HelpFormatter:
def __init__(self, width: int = 80, indent: int = 2):
self.width = width
self.indent = ' ' * indent
def format_command(self, command: dict) -> str:
sections = []
# Description
sections.append(command['description'])
# Usage
usage = self._format_usage(command)
sections.append(f"Usage:\n{self.indent}{usage}")
# Arguments
if args := command.get('arguments'):
section = self._format_section('Arguments', args)
sections.append(section)
# Options
if opts := command.get('options'):
section = self._format_section('Options', opts)
sections.append(section)
# Examples
if examples := command.get('examples'):
section = self._format_examples(examples)
sections.append(section)
return '\n\n'.join(sections)
def _format_section(self, title: str, items: List[dict]) -> str:
lines = [f"{title}:"]
for item in items:
name = item.get('name') or item.get('flags', '')
desc = item.get('description', '')
lines.append(f"{self.indent}{name:<20} {desc}")
return '\n'.join(lines)
def _format_examples(self, examples: List[dict]) -> str:
lines = ["Examples:"]
for ex in examples:
lines.append(f"{self.indent}$ {ex['command']}")
lines.append(f"{self.indent} {ex['description']}")
lines.append('')
return '\n'.join(lines).rstrip()
def _format_usage(self, command: dict) -> str:
parts = [command['name']]
for arg in command.get('arguments', []):
if arg.get('required', True):
parts.append(f"<{arg['name']}>")
else:
parts.append(f"[{arg['name']}]")
parts.append('[options]')
return ' '.join(parts)
Workflow
- Analyze commands - Review command definitions
- Structure sections - Organize help content
- Format content - Apply styling and layout
- Add examples - Include usage examples
- Generate output - Create final help text
Best Practices Applied
- Consistent section ordering
- Appropriate indentation
- Color coding for clarity
- Example-driven documentation
- Terminal width awareness
- Screen reader friendly
Target Processes
- cli-documentation-generation
- argument-parser-setup
- cli-command-structure-design
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