How do I install the Spawn:terminal skill?

Run npx skillmds add majiayu000/spawn-terminal in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

Is Spawn:terminal safe to use?

This skill has not completed SkillMD's automated safety review yet. Capability flags: makes network calls. SkillMD never runs a skill's scripts for you; review the SKILL.md before installing.

Which AI agents work with Spawn:terminal?

This skill is tagged as working with Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex. SKILL.md is an open format, so most agents that read a skills directory can load it too.

Is Spawn:terminal free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free, and the skill stays under its author's original license.

Who published Spawn:terminal?

majiayu000 (@majiayu000) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Spawn:terminal by majiayu000 — Agent Skill

Name: Spawn:terminal
Rating: 4.2 (5 reviews)
Author: majiayu000

File contents

Purpose

Spawn a new terminal window to execute CLI commands. This skill is for generic command execution, NOT for spawning AI agents. For AI agents, use the spawn:agent skill instead.

Variables

Variable	Default	Description
LOG_TO_FILE	false	Write full terminal output to debug file
CAPTURE	false	Block and return output directly

Instructions

MANDATORY - You MUST follow the Workflow steps below in order. Do not skip steps.

Identify the CLI command the user wants to run
Run <command> --help first to verify syntax and options
Execute the command in a new terminal using fork_terminal()

Red Flags - STOP and follow Cookbook

If you're about to:

Execute a command without checking its --help first
Assume you know the command syntax
Skip the --help step "because it's simple"
Spawn an AI agent (use spawn:agent instead)

STOP -> Run <command> --help first -> Review output -> Then proceed

Workflow

MANDATORY CHECKPOINTS - Verify each before proceeding:

Understand the user's request
VERIFY: This is a CLI command, NOT an AI agent request
READ: '../agent/fork_terminal.py' to understand the tooling
Follow the Cookbook: Read './cookbook/cli-command.md'
CHECKPOINT: Ran <command> --help and reviewed options
Execute fork_terminal(command, log_to_file=False, log_agent_output=False)

Cookbook

CLI Commands

IF: User requests any non-AI CLI command (ffmpeg, curl, python, npm, etc.)
THEN: Read and execute './cookbook/cli-command.md'
Examples:
- "Create a new terminal to run ffmpeg"
- "Spawn terminal with curl"
- "Fork a terminal to run python script.py"
- "New terminal: npm run build"

Usage

The fork_terminal() function is located at ../agent/fork_terminal.py:

from spawn.agent.fork_terminal import fork_terminal

# Simple command execution (no output capture)
fork_terminal("npm run build")

# With debug output capture
file_path = fork_terminal("ffmpeg -i video.mp4 output.gif", log_to_file=True)

# Blocking capture (waits for completion)
output = fork_terminal("python script.py", capture=True, log_to_file=True)

When to Use spawn:agent Instead

If the user mentions any of these, use spawn:agent:

Claude, Claude Code
Codex, OpenAI
Gemini, Google
Cursor
OpenCode
Copilot, GitHub Copilot
"AI agent", "coding agent", "spawn agent"

---name: spawn-terminaldescription: Spawn a new terminal window to run CLI commands (ffmpeg, curl, python, etc.). Use for non-AI command execution.--- # Purpose Spawn a new terminal window to execute CLI commands. This skill is for generic command execution, NOT for spawning AI agents. For AI agents, use the `spawn:agent` skill instead. ## Variables | Variable | Default | Description | |----------|---------|-------------| | LOG_TO_FILE | false | Write full terminal output to debug file | | CAPTURE | false | Block and return output directly | ## Instructions **MANDATORY** - You MUST follow the Workflow steps below in order. Do not skip steps. 1. Identify the CLI command the user wants to run 2. Run `<command> --help` first to verify syntax and options 3. Execute the command in a new terminal using `fork_terminal()` ## Red Flags - STOP and follow Cookbook If you're about to: - Execute a command without checking its --help first - Assume you know the command syntax - Skip the --help step "because it's simple" - Spawn an AI agent (use `spawn:agent` instead) **STOP** -> Run `<command> --help` first -> Review output -> Then proceed ## Workflow **MANDATORY CHECKPOINTS** - Verify each before proceeding: 1. [ ] Understand the user's request 2. [ ] **VERIFY**: This is a CLI command, NOT an AI agent request 3. [ ] READ: '../agent/fork_terminal.py' to understand the tooling 4. [ ] Follow the Cookbook: Read './cookbook/cli-command.md' 5. [ ] **CHECKPOINT**: Ran `<command> --help` and reviewed options 6. [ ] Execute fork_terminal(command, log_to_file=False, log_agent_output=False) ## Cookbook ### CLI Commands - IF: User requests any non-AI CLI command (ffmpeg, curl, python, npm, etc.) - THEN: Read and execute './cookbook/cli-command.md' - Examples: - "Create a new terminal to run ffmpeg" - "Spawn terminal with curl" - "Fork a terminal to run python script.py" - "New terminal: npm run build" ## Usage The `fork_terminal()` function is located at `../agent/fork_terminal.py`: ```python from spawn.agent.fork_terminal import fork_terminal # Simple command execution (no output capture) fork_terminal("npm run build") # With debug output capture file_path = fork_terminal("ffmpeg -i video.mp4 output.gif", log_to_file=True) # Blocking capture (waits for completion) output = fork_terminal("python script.py", capture=True, log_to_file=True) ``` ## When to Use spawn:agent Instead If the user mentions any of these, use `spawn:agent`: - Claude, Claude Code - Codex, OpenAI - Gemini, Google - Cursor - OpenCode - Copilot, GitHub Copilot - "AI agent", "coding agent", "spawn agent"

Frequently asked questions