How do I install the Xtract Linux skill?

Run npx skillmds add vimalinx/xtract-linux 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 Xtract Linux safe to use?

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

Which AI agents work with Xtract Linux?

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 Xtract Linux free to use?

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

Who published Xtract Linux?

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

Xtract Linux by vimalinx — Agent Skill

Name: Xtract Linux
Rating: 4.2 (5 reviews)
Author: vimalinx

File contents

xtract-linux

Linux platform binary for the EDirect xtract engine. It converts structured XML into tabular or generated XML output using record patterns, nested exploration scopes, conditional filters, and rich formatting controls.

Quick Start

Command: xtract.Linux -pattern <record> -element <field>
Local executable: /home/vimalinx/miniforge3/envs/bio/bin/xtract.Linux
Version seen locally: 24.0

When To Use This Tool

Extracting table rows directly from XML on Linux via the compiled xtract backend
Debugging raw xtract behavior separately from the public wrapper
Exploring XML structure before writing a larger Entrez Direct pipeline
Using built-in compiled help as the canonical reference for xtract arguments

Common Patterns

# Basic extraction from a tiny XML sample
printf '<Root><Rec><Val>A</Val></Rec><Rec><Val>B</Val></Rec></Root>\n' | \
  xtract.Linux -pattern Rec -element Val

# Show direct binary help
xtract.Linux -help

# Read XML from a file instead of stdin
xtract.Linux -input records.xml -pattern Rec -element Val

Recommended Workflow

Start with xtract.Linux -help if you need the complete compiled argument taxonomy.
Identify the record boundary with -pattern.
Add -group, -block, -subset, or conditional operators only after the basic extraction works.
Prefer the public xtract wrapper if you need its front-end shortcuts into transmute or rchive.

Guardrails

xtract.Linux -help and xtract.Linux -version both work here and report version 24.0.
This is the compiled backend only; the public xtract wrapper intercepts some flags such as -format, -outline, -j2x, and -e2index before dispatch.
In local testing, a minimal XML sample piped to xtract.Linux -pattern Rec -element Val emitted two lines: A and B.
If you run it with no stdin and no -input, it expects XML input and will fail rather than acting like a metadata-only tool.

---name: xtract-linuxdescription: Use when calling the Linux-specific compiled `xtract.Linux` binary directly to extract tabular or XML output from structured XML records.--- # xtract-linux Linux platform binary for the EDirect `xtract` engine. It converts structured XML into tabular or generated XML output using record patterns, nested exploration scopes, conditional filters, and rich formatting controls. ## Quick Start - **Command:** `xtract.Linux -pattern <record> -element <field>` - **Local executable:** `/home/vimalinx/miniforge3/envs/bio/bin/xtract.Linux` - **Version seen locally:** `24.0` ## When To Use This Tool - Extracting table rows directly from XML on Linux via the compiled `xtract` backend - Debugging raw `xtract` behavior separately from the public wrapper - Exploring XML structure before writing a larger Entrez Direct pipeline - Using built-in compiled help as the canonical reference for `xtract` arguments ## Common Patterns ```bash # Basic extraction from a tiny XML sample printf '<Root><Rec><Val>A</Val></Rec><Rec><Val>B</Val></Rec></Root>\n' | \ xtract.Linux -pattern Rec -element Val ``` ```bash # Show direct binary help xtract.Linux -help ``` ```bash # Read XML from a file instead of stdin xtract.Linux -input records.xml -pattern Rec -element Val ``` ## Recommended Workflow 1. Start with `xtract.Linux -help` if you need the complete compiled argument taxonomy. 2. Identify the record boundary with `-pattern`. 3. Add `-group`, `-block`, `-subset`, or conditional operators only after the basic extraction works. 4. Prefer the public `xtract` wrapper if you need its front-end shortcuts into `transmute` or `rchive`. ## Guardrails - `xtract.Linux -help` and `xtract.Linux -version` both work here and report version `24.0`. - This is the compiled backend only; the public `xtract` wrapper intercepts some flags such as `-format`, `-outline`, `-j2x`, and `-e2index` before dispatch. - In local testing, a minimal XML sample piped to `xtract.Linux -pattern Rec -element Val` emitted two lines: `A` and `B`. - If you run it with no stdin and no `-input`, it expects XML input and will fail rather than acting like a metadata-only tool.

Frequently asked questions