Background

CLI tools are how developers automate repetitive work. A well-designed command teaches argument parsing, UX for terminal users, and packaging — skills that transfer to backend services and DevOps.

Your mission

Build a command-line tool that saves students time on one repetitive workflow. Examples: batch-rename lecture recordings, convert grade CSVs to GPA summaries, scaffold weekly study notes, or validate JSON resume files.

Requirements

1. --help and --version flags with clear usage text.
2. Sensible defaults — zero-config path for the common case.
3. Human-readable errors — say what went wrong and how to fix it (file not found, invalid flag, etc.).
4. At least two subcommands or modes (e.g. scan, fix, export).
5. Install instructions for npm (npx), pip (pip install), or cargo — pick one ecosystem.
6. Demo GIF or screen recording showing a real workflow end-to-end.

Recommended approach

Step	Action
1	Interview 2 classmates: what task do they redo every week?
2	Script the happy path in 50 lines before adding flags
3	Add --dry-run if the tool mutates files
4	Publish install steps tested on a clean machine/VM

Evaluation criteria

• Utility — solves a believable student pain point.
• UX — help text, exit codes (0 success, non-zero failure), no stack traces for user errors.
• Packaging — another person can install and run from your README alone.
• Code structure — separation of CLI parsing vs business logic.

Tips

• Use commander, yargs, click, or cobra instead of hand-rolling argv parsing.
• Color output sparingly; support NO_COLOR or plain mode when possible.
• Include sample input files in the repo.

Submission checklist

• GitHub repo
• Demo GIF or short video
• Usage docs with install + examples