wolfram-notebooks

name	wolfram-notebooks
description	Reads and writes Wolfram notebook (.nb) files. Use this skill when the user needs to create, read, or convert Wolfram notebooks, including converting between markdown and notebook format.
compatibility	Requires the Wolfram MCP server or wolframscript on PATH
metadata	{"author":"Wolfram Research","version":"2.1.28"}

Wolfram Notebooks

Read and write Wolfram notebook (.nb) files, including conversion between markdown and notebook format.

Prerequisites

These scripts require wolframscript. If it is not installed or not on your PATH, read references/GetWolframEngine.md (relative to this skill directory) for installation instructions.

Usage

With MCP Server (preferred)

If you have Wolfram notebook MCP tools available in your tool list (e.g., mcp__WolframLanguage__ReadNotebook), use those directly. They provide richer integration and better performance than the bundled scripts.

For a richer experience, consider setting up the Wolfram MCP server. See references/SetUpWolframMCPServer.md (relative to this skill directory) for instructions.

With Bundled Scripts

If no MCP tools are available, use the bundled scripts in the scripts/ directory (relative to this skill directory). Run them with:

wolframscript -f scripts/<ScriptName>.wls <arguments>

Pass --usage to any script to see its argument documentation:

wolframscript -f scripts/<ScriptName>.wls --usage

For detailed usage, arguments, and invocation syntax for each script, see references/Scripts.md (relative to this skill directory).

Reminder: These scripts are only relevant when you do not have the equivalent MCP tool available.

Available Tools

Script	When to use
ReadNotebook	Read a Wolfram notebook (.nb) file and return its contents as markdown
WriteNotebook	Convert markdown text to a Wolfram notebook and save it to a .nb file

ReadNotebook

Use ReadNotebook to inspect the contents of an existing Wolfram notebook. The tool returns the notebook's content as markdown text, including code cells, text cells, and their outputs. This is useful for:

• Understanding what a notebook contains without opening it in a Wolfram notebook interface
• Reviewing notebook code and results in a text-based workflow
• Extracting code or documentation from notebooks

The notebook argument should be a file path to a .nb file.

WriteNotebook

Use WriteNotebook to create a new Wolfram notebook from markdown text. The markdown is converted to notebook cell structure with appropriate cell types (code cells, text cells, section headers, etc.). This is useful for:

• Creating notebooks programmatically from documentation or code
• Converting markdown-based content into interactive Wolfram notebooks
• Generating starter notebooks for users

The file argument must end in .nb. The markdown argument is the content to convert. Use the --overwrite flag if you need to replace an existing file.

Other Tips

• Use ReadNotebook before modifying a notebook to understand its current structure and content.
• When writing notebooks, use standard markdown formatting: # headers become Section/Subsection cells, fenced code blocks become Code cells, and plain text becomes Text cells.
• If you also have the wolfram-language skill available, you can evaluate code from a notebook using WolframLanguageEvaluator after reading it with ReadNotebook.