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CLI tools automate boring tasks. They save hours of work. They stop human errors.
Follow these steps to build a tool your team uses:
- Find a real pain point. Solve a problem you feel.
- Use a language your team knows. Use Python or Node.js.
- Follow Unix rules. Read from stdin. Write to stdout.
- Set good defaults. Users should not need a config file for every task.
- Write clear help text. Give examples users copy and run.
- Add a progress bar. Let users know the tool is working.
- Test in CI. Check for errors and exit codes.
Great engineering is about simplicity:
- Keep tools simple. Simple code is easy to fix.
- Write things down. Use ADRs to record big decisions.
- Use RFCs for major changes. Get feedback before you code.
- Keep teams small. Limit them to 6 or 8 people.
Try these goals:
- This week: Read a codebase you do not know.
- This month: Fix one hard piece of code.
- This quarter: Learn one new technology.