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printing-press-score

mvanhorn/cli-printing-press

Score generated CLIs against the Steinberger bar and compare them side-by-side.

What is printing-press-score?

This skill evaluates command-line interfaces (CLIs) using the Steinberger scoring framework, which measures quality across 16 dimensions including auth, error handling, UX, and code integrity. Use it to assess a single generated CLI, rescore the current one, or compare two CLIs to identify strengths and gaps.

  • Score a CLI against 16 Steinberger dimensions (output modes, auth, error handling, terminal UX, readme, doctor, agent-native features, caching, breadth, vision, workflows, insight, path validity, auth protocol, data pipeline integrity, sync correctness, type fidelity, and dead code)
  • Rescore the current CLI or score by name/path
  • Compare two CLIs side-by-side to highlight differences
  • Generate gap reports identifying missing capabilities
  • Handle missing specs gracefully by marking spec-derived dimensions as N/A

How to install printing-press-score

npx skills add https://github.com/mvanhorn/cli-printing-press --skill printing-press-score
Prerequisites
  • Go 1.26.6 or newer installed
  • cli-printing-press binary installed (via `go install github.com/mvanhorn/cli-printing-press/v4/cmd/cli-printing-press@latest`)
Claude Code
Cursor
Windsurf
Cline

How to use printing-press-score

  1. 1.Run the setup contract to verify the cli-printing-press binary is on PATH and initialize scope variables
  2. 2.Parse your input: use no arguments to rescore current, one name/path to score single, or two names/paths (with noise words like 'vs' stripped) to compare
  3. 3.Resolve CLI directories by name from the library, by path, or from current-run state
  4. 4.Locate the OpenAPI spec at <cli-dir>/spec.json or from run state; proceed without it if unavailable
  5. 5.Run the scorecard command with the resolved directory and optional spec path
  6. 6.Parse and display the JSON output showing scores across all 16 dimensions, overall grade, and gap report

Use cases

Good for
  • Evaluate a newly generated CLI to understand its Steinberger score and grade before deployment
  • Compare two versions of a CLI to see which improvements were made
  • Identify the top gaps in a CLI's implementation to prioritize next development work
  • Verify that a CLI meets minimum quality standards across all 16 dimensions before sharing with users
  • Track scoring progress over multiple iterations of CLI generation
Who it's for
  • CLI developers and architects building agent-native command-line tools
  • Teams using the printing-press pipeline to generate CLIs from OpenAPI specs
  • Quality assurance engineers validating CLI completeness and correctness
  • Product managers tracking CLI quality metrics across versions

printing-press-score FAQ

What is the Steinberger bar?

The Steinberger framework is a 16-dimension scoring system for evaluating CLI quality, covering capabilities (output modes, auth, error handling, UX, documentation, agent integration, caching, breadth, vision, workflows, insight) and code quality (path validity, auth protocol, data pipeline integrity, sync correctness, type fidelity, dead code).

Can I score a CLI without an OpenAPI spec?

Yes. If no spec is found, spec-derived dimensions will be marked N/A and omitted from the denominator. Provide a spec path for full scoring.

How do I compare two CLIs?

Use the command `/printing-press-score <cli-1> vs <cli-2>` (noise words like 'vs', 'versus', 'compare' are stripped). The skill resolves both by name or path and runs the scorecard for each.

What does 'rescore current' do?

Running `/printing-press-score` with no arguments rescores the CLI in the current run state. It finds the active CLI from $PRESS_CURRENT or the library and re-evaluates it against all 16 dimensions.

Where are generated CLIs stored?

CLIs are stored in $PRESS_LIBRARY (published), $PRESS_RUNSTATE (current run), or $PRESS_MANUSCRIPTS (archived). The skill searches these locations when you provide a CLI name.

Full instructions (SKILL.md)

Source of truth, from mvanhorn/cli-printing-press.


name: printing-press-score description: Score a generated CLI against the Steinberger bar, compare two CLIs side-by-side version: 0.1.0 min-binary-version: "4.0.0" allowed-tools:

  • Bash
  • Read
  • Glob
  • Grep
  • AskUserQuestion created_by: user

/printing-press-score

Score generated CLIs against the Steinberger bar. Supports rescoring, scoring by name/path, and comparing two CLIs.

Quick Start

/printing-press-score                              # rescore current CLI
/printing-press-score notion-pp-cli-4              # score by name
/printing-press-score ~/my-cli                     # score by path
/printing-press-score notion-pp-cli-4 vs notion-pp-cli-2  # compare two

Prerequisites

  • Go 1.26.6 or newer installed
  • cli-printing-press binary on PATH (install with go install github.com/mvanhorn/cli-printing-press/v4/cmd/cli-printing-press@latest)

Step 0: Setup

Before any other commands, run the setup contract to verify the cli-printing-press binary is on PATH and initialize scope variables:

<!-- PRESS_SETUP_CONTRACT_START -->
# min-binary-version: 4.0.0

# Derive scope first — needed for local build detection
_scope_dir="$(git rev-parse --show-toplevel 2>/dev/null || echo "$PWD")"
_scope_dir="$(cd "$_scope_dir" && pwd -P)"

# Prefer local build when running from inside the printing-press repo.
_press_repo=false
if [ -x "$_scope_dir/cli-printing-press" ] && [ -d "$_scope_dir/cmd/cli-printing-press" ]; then
  _press_repo=true
  export PATH="$_scope_dir:$PATH"
  echo "Using local build: $_scope_dir/cli-printing-press"
elif ! command -v cli-printing-press >/dev/null 2>&1; then
  if [ -x "$HOME/go/bin/cli-printing-press" ]; then
    echo "cli-printing-press found at ~/go/bin/cli-printing-press but not on PATH."
    echo "Add GOPATH/bin to your PATH:  export PATH=\"\$HOME/go/bin:\$PATH\""
  else
    echo "cli-printing-press binary not found."
    echo "Install with:  go install github.com/mvanhorn/cli-printing-press/v4/cmd/cli-printing-press@latest"
  fi
  return 1 2>/dev/null || exit 1
fi

# Resolve and emit the absolute path the agent must use for every later
# `cli-printing-press` invocation. `export PATH` above only affects this one
# Bash tool call; subsequent calls open a fresh shell and resolve bare
# `cli-printing-press` against the user's default PATH, where a stale global
# can silently shadow the local build. The agent captures this marker and
# substitutes the absolute path into every later invocation.
if [ "$_press_repo" = "true" ]; then
  PRINTING_PRESS_BIN="$_scope_dir/cli-printing-press"
else
  PRINTING_PRESS_BIN="$(command -v cli-printing-press 2>/dev/null || true)"
fi
echo "PRINTING_PRESS_BIN=$PRINTING_PRESS_BIN"

PRESS_BASE="$(basename "$_scope_dir" | tr '[:upper:]' '[:lower:]' | sed -E 's/[^a-z0-9_-]/-/g; s/^-+//; s/-+$//')"
if [ -z "$PRESS_BASE" ]; then
  PRESS_BASE="workspace"
fi

PRESS_SCOPE="$PRESS_BASE-$(printf '%s' "$_scope_dir" | shasum -a 256 | cut -c1-8)"
PRESS_HOME="${PRINTING_PRESS_HOME:-$HOME/printing-press}"
PRESS_RUNSTATE="$PRESS_HOME/.runstate/$PRESS_SCOPE"
PRESS_LIBRARY="$PRESS_HOME/library"
PRESS_MANUSCRIPTS="$PRESS_HOME/manuscripts"
PRESS_CURRENT="$PRESS_RUNSTATE/current"

mkdir -p "$PRESS_RUNSTATE" "$PRESS_LIBRARY" "$PRESS_MANUSCRIPTS" "$PRESS_CURRENT"
<!-- PRESS_SETUP_CONTRACT_END -->

After running the setup contract, capture the PRINTING_PRESS_BIN=<abs-path> line from stdout. Every subsequent cli-printing-press ... invocation in this skill must use that absolute path (substitute the value, not the literal $PRINTING_PRESS_BIN token) — export PATH above only affects the single Bash tool call it runs in, so later calls open a fresh shell where bare cli-printing-press resolves against the user's default PATH and a stale global can shadow the local build.

After capturing the binary path, check binary version compatibility. Read the min-binary-version field from this skill's YAML frontmatter. Run <PRINTING_PRESS_BIN> version --json and parse the version from the output. Compare it to min-binary-version using semver rules. If the installed binary is older than the minimum, stop immediately and tell the user: "cli-printing-press binary vX.Y.Z is older than the minimum required vA.B.C. Run go install github.com/mvanhorn/cli-printing-press/v4/cmd/cli-printing-press@latest to update."

Current-run state is resolved from $PRESS_RUNSTATE. Published CLIs are resolved from $PRESS_LIBRARY. Archived manuscripts are resolved from $PRESS_MANUSCRIPTS.

Step 1: Parse Arguments

Read the user's input after /printing-press-score. The input is free-form — interpret intent, don't enforce syntax.

Noise words to strip: compare, vs, versus, and, against, with, to

After stripping noise words, count the remaining tokens:

  • 0 tokens → Rescore Current mode
  • 1 token → Score Single mode
  • 2 tokens → Compare mode

Step 2: Resolve CLI Directories

For each CLI identifier, resolve it to a directory path:

If the token contains / or .

Treat it as a path (absolute or relative). Verify the directory exists.

If the token is a plain name

Try these locations in order:

  1. $PRESS_LIBRARY/<name>/ — exact match
  2. $PRESS_LIBRARY/<name>-pp-cli/ — with -pp-cli suffix
  3. If neither exists, Glob $PRESS_LIBRARY/<name>-pp-cli*
  4. If exactly one glob match exists and is a directory, use it
  5. If multiple glob matches exist, present a numbered menu using AskUserQuestion

If neither exists, scan current-run and archived state: 6. Use Glob to find $PRESS_RUNSTATE/runs/*/state.json files 7. Read each, look for an output_dir or working_dir value whose basename contains the name 8. If found and the directory exists, use it

If nothing resolves, report the error: "Could not find CLI '<name>'. Provide a path or check the name."

Rescore Current (0 tokens)

  1. Use Glob to find all $PRESS_CURRENT/*.json files
  2. Read each to get api_name, state_path, and working_dir
  3. Filter to those whose working_dir actually exists on disk
  4. If none are found, Glob $PRESS_LIBRARY/*-pp-cli* and use those directories instead
  5. If exactly one → use it automatically
  6. If multiple → present a numbered menu using AskUserQuestion:
    Multiple CLIs found. Which one to score?
    1. stripe-pp-cli ($PRESS_LIBRARY/stripe-pp-cli)
    2. notion-pp-cli ($PRESS_LIBRARY/notion-pp-cli)
    3. linear-pp-cli ($PRESS_LIBRARY/linear-pp-cli)
    
  7. If none found → report: "No generated CLIs found. Provide a name or path."

Step 3: Find Spec for Tier 2 Scoring

For each resolved CLI directory, find the OpenAPI spec:

  1. Check <cli-dir>/spec.json — the pipeline converts YAML specs to JSON during generation
  2. If not found, scan $PRESS_RUNSTATE/runs/*/state.json files for one matching this CLI's directory. Read its spec_path field. If that file exists on disk, use it.
  3. If no spec found, proceed without --spec. Note to the user: "No spec found — spec-derived dimensions will be marked N/A and omitted from the denominator. Provide a spec path for full scoring."

Step 4: Run Scorecard

Single Score Mode

Run the scorecard command:

cli-printing-press scorecard --dir <resolved-path> --json

If a spec was found, add --spec <spec-path>.

Parse the JSON output. The structure is:

{
  "api_name": "...",
  "steinberger": {
    "output_modes": 8,
    "auth": 7,
    "error_handling": 6,
    "terminal_ux": 9,
    "readme": 5,
    "doctor": 10,
    "agent_native": 7,
    "local_cache": 4,
    "breadth": 7,
    "vision": 6,
    "workflows": 3,
    "insight": 5,
    "path_validity": 0,
    "auth_protocol": 0,
    "data_pipeline_integrity": 7,
    "sync_correctness": 6,
    "type_fidelity": 4,
    "dead_code": 3,
    "total": 72,
    "percentage": 72
  },
  "overall_grade": "B",
  "gap_report": ["..."],
  "unscored_dimensions": ["path_validity", "auth_protocol"]
}

If unscored_dimensions is present, those dimensions should be rendered as N/A, not 0/x, and should be described as omitted from the denominator rather than as fixable CLI defects. For backward compatibility, JSON still encodes the numeric fields as 0; consumers must use unscored_dimensions to distinguish N/A from a real zero.

Learn-loop credit is static-behavioral, never presence-based: the scorecard credits teach/recall/learnings registration on the root command and non-empty entity lookup seeds (or the spec's recorded no-entities escape). The learn loop is default-on, so internal/learn/ existing earns nothing; when explaining a learn gap, point at missing seeds or unregistered commands, not missing files. Execution proof (verify matrix, learnings stats) belongs to verify and dogfood; the scorecard runs no binaries.

Compare Mode

Run both scorecard commands in parallel using two simultaneous Bash tool calls:

# Call 1:
cli-printing-press scorecard --dir <path1> --spec <spec1> --json

# Call 2:
cli-printing-press scorecard --dir <path2> --spec <spec2> --json

Parse both JSON outputs.

Step 5: Render Output

Single Score Table

Render a rich markdown table. Note: Tier 1 dimensions are all /10. Tier 2 dimensions are /10 except TypeFidelity and DeadCode which are /5.

Scorecard: <api_name>

Infrastructure (Tier 1)
| Dimension      | Score |
|----------------|-------|
| Output Modes   | 8/10  |
| Auth           | 7/10  |
| Error Handling | 6/10  |
| Terminal UX    | 9/10  |
| README         | 5/10  |
| Doctor         | 10/10 |
| Agent Native   | 7/10  |
| Local Cache    | 4/10  |
| Breadth        | 7/10  |
| Vision         | 6/10  |
| Workflows      | 3/10  |
| Insight        | 5/10  |

Domain Correctness (Tier 2)
| Dimension               | Score |
|--------------------------|-------|
| Path Validity            | 9/10  |
| Auth Protocol            | 8/10  |
| Data Pipeline Integrity  | 7/10  |
| Sync Correctness         | 6/10  |
| Type Fidelity            | 4/5   |
| Dead Code                | 3/5   |

**Total: 72/100 — Grade B**

If gap_report is non-empty, list the gaps:

Gaps:
- <gap 1>
- <gap 2>

If unscored_dimensions is non-empty, add a note after the table:

Note: path_validity, auth_protocol were unscored and omitted from the denominator. Provide a spec path for full scoring.

Compare Table

Render a side-by-side table with a delta column. Show the first CLI name and second CLI name as column headers. Calculate delta as (CLI 1 score - CLI 2 score). Show +N for positive, -N for negative, — for zero.

Scorecard Comparison: <name1> vs <name2>

Infrastructure (Tier 1)
| Dimension      | <name1> | <name2> | Delta |
|----------------|---------|---------|-------|
| Output Modes   | 8/10    | 5/10    | +3    |
| Auth           | 7/10    | 7/10    | —     |
| ...            |         |         |       |

Domain Correctness (Tier 2)
| Dimension               | <name1> | <name2> | Delta |
|--------------------------|---------|---------|-------|
| Path Validity            | 9/10    | 6/10    | +3    |
| ...                      |         |         |       |

| **Total**  | **72/100 (B)** | **56/100 (C)** | **+16** |

Error Handling

  • If the cli-printing-press binary is not on PATH → show install instructions: go install github.com/mvanhorn/cli-printing-press/v4/cmd/cli-printing-press@latest
  • If the scorecard command fails → report the error with the full stderr output
  • If a CLI directory doesn't exist → report which name couldn't be resolved
  • If JSON parsing fails → show the raw output and report the parsing error