modern-cli-tools

What this skill does

# Modern CLI Tools Agent

## What's New in 2025

- **eza Replaces exa**: Original exa is unmaintained (@ogham unreachable), use **eza** fork instead
- **eza v0.23.0+** (July 2025): Hyperlink support, custom themes, enhanced Git integration
- **ripgrep Performance**: SIMD optimizations (Teddy algorithm), 23x-fastest on benchmarks
- **fd Speed**: 23x faster than `find -iregex`, parallel directory traversal (~855ms vs 11-20s)
- **bat Integrations**: Git sidebar (+ for additions, ~ for modifications), fzf/ripgrep/man integration
- **Universal Adoption**: Modern tools now the de facto standard for Rust/Go development workflows

## Overview

This agent teaches modern alternatives to traditional Unix commands that are faster, more user-friendly, and feature-rich. These tools are written in Rust and other modern languages, providing significant performance improvements and better default behaviors.

**Important Note**: Always use **eza**, not exa. The original exa project is unmaintained (since 2023), and eza is the actively maintained community fork with new features and bug fixes.

## For Claude: Tool Selection Guidelines

**When performing file operations, ALWAYS prefer modern tools:**

- ❌ `find` → ✅ `fd` - Faster, simpler syntax, respects .gitignore
- ❌ `grep -r` → ✅ `rg` - 10-100x faster, better defaults
- ❌ `ls -la` → ✅ `eza -la` - Better formatting, git integration
- ❌ `cat file` → ✅ `bat file` - Syntax highlighting, line numbers
- ❌ `sed` → ✅ `sd` - Simpler syntax, safer
- ❌ `du -sh` → ✅ `dust` - Visual tree, faster
- ❌ `df -h` → ✅ `duf` - Better formatting
- ❌ `ps aux` → ✅ `procs` - Modern output, better filtering

**Before using legacy tools, check if modern alternatives are available.**

## Tool Comparison

| Traditional  | Modern Alternative | Key Benefits                                       |
| ------------ | ------------------ | -------------------------------------------------- |
| `find`       | `fd`               | Faster, simpler syntax, respects `.gitignore`      |
| `grep`       | `rg` (ripgrep)     | 10-100x faster, better defaults, auto-ignore       |
| `ls`         | `eza`              | Better formatting, colors, git integration         |
| `cat`        | `bat`              | Syntax highlighting, line numbers, git integration |
| `cd`         | `zoxide`           | Smart directory jumping based on frequency         |
| `sed`        | `sd`               | Simpler syntax, safer replacements                 |
| `top`/`htop` | `btop`             | Beautiful TUI, better metrics                      |
| `du`         | `dust`             | Visual tree, faster analysis                       |
| `df`         | `duf`              | Better formatting, clearer output                  |
| `ps`         | `procs`            | Modern output, better filtering                    |

## Installation

### macOS (Homebrew)

```bash
# Install all at once
brew install fd ripgrep eza bat fzf sd zoxide dust duf procs btop

# Or install individually
brew install fd           # find alternative
brew install ripgrep      # grep alternative (rg)
brew install eza          # ls alternative
brew install bat          # cat alternative
brew install fzf          # fuzzy finder
brew install sd           # sed alternative
brew install zoxide       # smart cd
brew install dust         # du alternative
brew install duf          # df alternative
brew install procs        # ps alternative
brew install btop         # top/htop alternative
```

### Linux (cargo - Rust package manager)

```bash
# Install Rust first
curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -sSf https://sh.rustup.rs | sh

# Install tools
cargo install fd-find ripgrep eza bat-cat sd zoxide du-dust duf procs
```

## fd - Modern Find

### Basic Usage

```bash
# Find files by name (case-insensitive by default)
fd readme

# Find with extension
fd -e md
fd -e js -e ts

# Find in specific directory
fd pattern ~/projects

# Find directories only
fd -t d config

# Find files only
fd -t f

# Find hidden files
fd -H config

# Exclude patterns
fd -E node_modules -E .git

# Execute command on results
fd -e jpg -x convert {} {.}.png
```

### Advanced Patterns

```bash
# Regex search
fd '^[A-Z].*\.md$'

# Show full path
fd -p src/components

# Search by file size
fd -S +1m  # Files larger than 1MB
fd -S -100k  # Files smaller than 100KB

# Modified time
fd -c never  # Changed within never
fd --changed-within 1d  # Changed within 1 day
fd --changed-before 1w  # Changed before 1 week

# Case sensitive
fd -s README

# Max depth
fd -d 3 config
```

### Common Use Cases

```bash
# Find all TypeScript files excluding node_modules
fd -e ts -E node_modules

# Find config files
fd -g '*config*'

# Find and delete empty directories
fd -t d -x sh -c 'rmdir {} 2>/dev/null'

# List all test files
fd test -e ts -e js

# Find large log files
fd -e log -S +100m
```

## rg (ripgrep) - Modern Grep

### Basic Usage

```bash
# Search for pattern
rg "TODO"

# Case insensitive
rg -i "readme"

# Whole word match
rg -w "config"

# Show line numbers (default)
rg "error"

# Show context (3 lines before and after)
rg -C 3 "function"

# Search specific file types
rg -t ts "interface"
rg -t md "# Heading"

# Exclude file types
rg -T js "pattern"

# Search hidden files
rg -. "secret"

# Search without ignoring (.gitignore)
rg -u "pattern"
```

### Advanced Patterns

```bash
# Regex search
rg '^\s*function\s+\w+'

# Multiple patterns (OR)
rg -e "error" -e "warning"

# Invert match (show non-matching lines)
rg -v "test"

# Count matches
rg -c "import"

# Show only filenames
rg -l "TODO"

# Show only matching parts
rg -o '\b[A-Z]{3,}\b'

# Replace (preview only)
rg "old" -r "new"

# Multiline search
rg -U 'function.*\{.*\}'
```

### Common Use Cases

```bash
# Find all TODOs in code
rg "TODO|FIXME|HACK"

# Find imports of a specific module
rg "import.*from.*'react'"

# Find function definitions
rg "function\s+\w+\s*\("

# Search in specific directories
rg "API_KEY" src/

# Find unused exports
rg -w "export" | rg -v "import"

# Case-insensitive search in markdown files
rg -i -t md "claude code"

# Find potential secrets (be careful!)
rg -i "(password|secret|api[_-]?key)\s*[:=]"

# Search git history
rg --no-ignore --hidden "sensitive_data"
```

## eza - Modern ls (Maintained Fork of exa)

**Important**: eza is the actively maintained fork of exa. The original exa project has been unmaintained since 2023 (maintainer @ogham unreachable). Use **eza** for latest features and bug fixes.

### What's New in eza v0.23.0+ (July 2025)

- **Hyperlink Support**: Clickable file/directory links in terminal
- **Custom Themes**: User-defined color schemes
- **Enhanced Git Integration**: Better git status visualization
- **Performance Improvements**: Faster tree rendering
- **More File Type Icons**: Expanded icon support for modern file types

### Basic Usage

```bash
# List files (basic)
eza

# Long format
eza -l

# All files including hidden
eza -a

# Long format with all files
eza -la

# Tree view
eza -T

# Tree with depth limit
eza -T -L 2

# Sort by time
eza -l --sort modified

# Sort by size
eza -l --sort size

# Reverse sort
eza -lr
```

### Advanced Features (v0.23.0+)

```bash
# Git status integration (enhanced in v0.23)
eza -l --git

# Hyperlinks (clickable in compatible terminals)
eza -l --hyperlink

# Custom theme
eza -l --color-scale

# Show file headers
eza -lh

# Group directories first
eza -l --group-directories-first

# Show icons (with nerd fonts)
eza -l --icons

# Color scale for file ages
eza -l --color-scale

# Show file times
eza -l --time-style long-iso
eza -l --time modified
eza -l --time accessed
eza -l --time created

# Binary size units
eza -l --binary

# Show inode
eza -li

# Only directories
eza -lD

# Only files
eza -lf
```

### Common Use Cases

```bash
# Beautiful tree with git status
eza -T --git-ignore --icons

# Recently modified files
eza -l --sort modified -r | head -10

# Largest files in directory
eza -l --sort size -r

# Show all with git stat