How do I install the Xcommon Sh skill?

Run npx skillmds add vimalinx/xcommon-sh 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.

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Is Xcommon Sh free to use?

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Who published Xcommon Sh?

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

Xcommon Sh by vimalinx — Agent Skill

Name: Xcommon Sh
Rating: 4.2 (5 reviews)
Author: vimalinx

File contents

xcommon-sh

Shared shell library for the newer local-archive x* EDirect scripts. It is not a meaningful standalone CLI; it defines common variables and functions such as ParseStdin, GetUIDs, FindArchiveFolder, FindPostingsFolder, FindDataFolder, DisplayError, and date-constraint normalization.

Quick Start

File: /home/vimalinx/miniforge3/envs/bio/bin/xcommon.sh
Typical use: sourced by sibling tools such as xfetch, xfilter, and xinfo
Not a normal command: direct execution provides no useful interface

When To Use This Tool

Understanding why xfetch, xfilter, or xinfo behave the way they do
Debugging local archive/postings path discovery based on EDIRECT_LOCAL_ARCHIVE
Inspecting shared stdin parsing and UID-normalization logic across the x* helpers
Auditing common error/warning rendering or EDIRECT_TRACE behavior

Common Patterns

# Read the shared helper source
sed -n '1,260p' /home/vimalinx/miniforge3/envs/bio/bin/xcommon.sh

# Grep the library for folder-discovery helpers
rg 'FindArchiveFolder|FindPostingsFolder|FindDataFolder' /home/vimalinx/miniforge3/envs/bio/bin/xcommon.sh

# Source it inside a debugging shell if needed
. /home/vimalinx/miniforge3/envs/bio/bin/xcommon.sh

Recommended Workflow

Treat xcommon.sh as shared implementation, not as an end-user command.
Read it when a sibling x* wrapper emits path or stdin-source errors that seem opaque.
Focus first on FindLocalArchiveFolder, GetUIDs, ParseStdin, and the display helpers.
If tracing is needed, set EDIRECT_TRACE=true before running the higher-level wrapper that sources this file.

Guardrails

Direct execution is effectively meaningless here: xcommon.sh -h and xcommon.sh --version produced no useful output in local testing.
Source inspection shows local path discovery ultimately calls rchive -local <db> <Archive|Postings|Data|Source>.
If EDIRECT_LOCAL_ARCHIVE cannot be resolved, the shared helper emits ERROR: Must supply path to local data by setting EDIRECT_LOCAL_ARCHIVE environment variable and exits.
GetUIDs normalizes IDs by splitting on non-alphanumeric/underscore/dot characters and sorting/uniquing the final stream.

---name: xcommon-shdescription: Use when reading or debugging the shared `xcommon.sh` shell library that supplies local-archive discovery, stdin parsing, and common helper functions to EDirect `x*` scripts.--- # xcommon-sh Shared shell library for the newer local-archive `x*` EDirect scripts. It is not a meaningful standalone CLI; it defines common variables and functions such as `ParseStdin`, `GetUIDs`, `FindArchiveFolder`, `FindPostingsFolder`, `FindDataFolder`, `DisplayError`, and date-constraint normalization. ## Quick Start - **File:** `/home/vimalinx/miniforge3/envs/bio/bin/xcommon.sh` - **Typical use:** sourced by sibling tools such as `xfetch`, `xfilter`, and `xinfo` - **Not a normal command:** direct execution provides no useful interface ## When To Use This Tool - Understanding why `xfetch`, `xfilter`, or `xinfo` behave the way they do - Debugging local archive/postings path discovery based on `EDIRECT_LOCAL_ARCHIVE` - Inspecting shared stdin parsing and UID-normalization logic across the `x*` helpers - Auditing common error/warning rendering or `EDIRECT_TRACE` behavior ## Common Patterns ```bash # Read the shared helper source sed -n '1,260p' /home/vimalinx/miniforge3/envs/bio/bin/xcommon.sh ``` ```bash # Grep the library for folder-discovery helpers rg 'FindArchiveFolder|FindPostingsFolder|FindDataFolder' /home/vimalinx/miniforge3/envs/bio/bin/xcommon.sh ``` ```bash # Source it inside a debugging shell if needed . /home/vimalinx/miniforge3/envs/bio/bin/xcommon.sh ``` ## Recommended Workflow 1. Treat `xcommon.sh` as shared implementation, not as an end-user command. 2. Read it when a sibling `x*` wrapper emits path or stdin-source errors that seem opaque. 3. Focus first on `FindLocalArchiveFolder`, `GetUIDs`, `ParseStdin`, and the display helpers. 4. If tracing is needed, set `EDIRECT_TRACE=true` before running the higher-level wrapper that sources this file. ## Guardrails - Direct execution is effectively meaningless here: `xcommon.sh -h` and `xcommon.sh --version` produced no useful output in local testing. - Source inspection shows local path discovery ultimately calls `rchive -local <db> <Archive|Postings|Data|Source>`. - If `EDIRECT_LOCAL_ARCHIVE` cannot be resolved, the shared helper emits `ERROR: Must supply path to local data by setting EDIRECT_LOCAL_ARCHIVE environment variable` and exits. - `GetUIDs` normalizes IDs by splitting on non-alphanumeric/underscore/dot characters and sorting/uniquing the final stream.

Frequently asked questions