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feat: add preferred tools reference table#11

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CybotTM merged 2 commits intomainfrom
feat/preferred-tools
Feb 25, 2026
Merged

feat: add preferred tools reference table#11
CybotTM merged 2 commits intomainfrom
feat/preferred-tools

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@CybotTM CybotTM commented Feb 25, 2026

Summary

  • Add "Preferred Tools" quick-reference table mapping legacy -> modern alternatives (14 tool pairings)
  • Add hyperfine benchmarking tool guidance with usage examples
  • New references/preferred-tools.md with detailed usage patterns, install commands, and integration tips
  • Cross-references to file-search, data-tools, git-workflow, and security-audit skills

Motivation

The cli-tools skill manages installation but gives no guidance on WHICH tool to pick for a task. Agents waste tokens using grep on JSON or find when fd exists.

Changes

  • skills/cli-tools/SKILL.md - Added "Preferred Tools" section with decision table after Capabilities, before Triggers
  • skills/cli-tools/references/preferred-tools.md - Detailed tool comparison and patterns (430+ lines)

Signed-off-by: Sebastian Mendel <info@sebastianmendel.de>
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Summary of Changes

Hello @CybotTM, I'm Gemini Code Assist1! I'm currently reviewing this pull request and will post my feedback shortly. In the meantime, here's a summary to help you and other reviewers quickly get up to speed!

This pull request enhances the CLI tools skill by providing comprehensive guidance on selecting modern, efficient alternatives to traditional Unix utilities. It introduces a structured comparison of tools for various tasks, from file searching to data processing and benchmarking, aiming to optimize agent performance and improve overall workflow efficiency.

Highlights

  • Preferred Tools Reference Table: A new 'Preferred Tools' quick-reference table has been added, mapping 14 legacy CLI tools to their modern alternatives, along with reasons for preference and associated skills.
  • Hyperfine Benchmarking Guidance: Guidance for the hyperfine benchmarking tool has been included, providing usage examples for statistical command benchmarking.
  • New Detailed Reference File: A new file, references/preferred-tools.md, has been created to provide detailed usage patterns, installation commands, and integration tips for the preferred tools.
  • Cross-Skill References: The new content includes cross-references to related skills such as file-search, data-tools, git-workflow, and security-audit.
Changelog
  • skills/cli-tools/SKILL.md
    • Added a new 'Preferred Tools' section with a decision table.
    • Included a dedicated section for hyperfine command benchmarking guidance.
    • Updated the references list to include the new preferred-tools.md file.
  • skills/cli-tools/references/preferred-tools.md
    • Added a new file detailing modern CLI tool alternatives across various domains (file search, data processing, Git, security, benchmarking, viewing).
    • Provided installation instructions, usage examples, configuration tips, and integration patterns for each recommended tool.
    • Included a performance reference table comparing typical speedups of modern tools over legacy ones.
Activity
  • The pull request was created by CybotTM.
  • The pull request introduces new features and documentation for CLI tools.
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Code Review

This pull request adds excellent documentation for preferred modern CLI tools, providing a valuable reference for developers. The new preferred-tools.md file is comprehensive and well-structured, with practical examples. I've made a few suggestions to improve clarity and safety in the examples provided in the new reference file. Specifically, I've pointed out a potentially confusing installation instruction for yq, and suggested adding cautionary notes for commands that are destructive or require special privileges.

- Fix yq install: replace pip install yq (kislyuk/yq) with correct
  Mike Farah Go-based yq install methods (brew, binary download)
- Add caution note to destructive fd -x rm example
- Add sudo requirement note to hyperfine --prepare cache clear example

Signed-off-by: Sebastian Mendel <info@sebastianmendel.de>
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Pull request overview

Adds a “Preferred Tools” quick-reference to the cli-tools skill and a new detailed reference doc to guide agents/users toward modern CLI alternatives (and when to use them).

Changes:

  • Added a “Preferred Tools” decision table and a short hyperfine benchmarking primer to skills/cli-tools/SKILL.md.
  • Added skills/cli-tools/references/preferred-tools.md with extended usage patterns, install notes, and integration examples.

Reviewed changes

Copilot reviewed 2 out of 2 changed files in this pull request and generated 8 comments.

File Description
skills/cli-tools/SKILL.md Introduces the preferred-tools table + hyperfine section and links to the new reference doc.
skills/cli-tools/references/preferred-tools.md New long-form reference describing modern CLI replacements, examples, and integration patterns.

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@CybotTM CybotTM merged commit fc57ffe into main Feb 25, 2026
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@CybotTM CybotTM deleted the feat/preferred-tools branch February 25, 2026 12:11
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2 participants