| name | summarize |
| description | Use the steipete/summarize CLI to summarize URLs, local files, stdin, YouTube links, podcasts, and media with LLM models. Use when installing or running summarize, configuring provider/API keys, tuning length/language/json/extract/slides flags, setting ~/.summarize/config.json defaults, or troubleshooting CLI errors. |
Summarize CLI
Use this skill to run summarize effectively in terminal workflows.
Focus on practical usage and command execution, not broad project background.
Workflow
- Confirm input type and desired output format.
- Run a minimal real command first (
summarize "<input>").
- Select a model/provider and ensure matching API credentials.
- Add flags incrementally only after a baseline run succeeds.
- If it fails, re-run with
--verbose or --json before changing multiple variables.
Quick Patterns
- Summarize a URL:
summarize "https://example.com"
- Summarize a local file:
summarize "/path/to/file.pdf"
- Summarize piped input:
cat notes.md | summarize -
- Summarize YouTube/media URL:
summarize "https://youtube.com/watch?v=..."
- Force model/provider:
summarize "https://example.com" --model openai/gpt-5-mini
- Control length:
summarize "https://example.com" --length long
- Return diagnostics JSON:
summarize "https://example.com" --json
- Extract content without summarizing:
summarize "https://example.com" --extract --format md
Configuration Rules
- Prefer explicit
--model on task-critical runs.
- Use
~/.summarize/config.json for stable defaults.
- Remember precedence for model selection:
--modelSUMMARIZE_MODEL~/.summarize/config.json- built-in default (
auto)
Troubleshooting Flow
- Re-run with
--verbose.
- Confirm API key matches the chosen provider/model.
- Switch to a known-good model (for example
openai/gpt-5-mini or google/gemini-3-flash-preview).
- For media or YouTube failures, verify external dependencies (
yt-dlp, ffmpeg, optionally tesseract).
- Use
--json to inspect extraction and metric fields.
Scope
- Prioritize how to run commands and fix concrete failures.
- Do not include full repository-level documentation unless explicitly requested.
- Use references/cli.md only for deeper flag/provider details.
References
Read references/cli.md for install commands, provider keys, advanced flags, and error-specific guidance.
