cli-speed-tools

name	cli-speed-tools
description	Use when listing files, searching file contents, finding files by name, or viewing files in terminal. Replace slow standard tools (ls, grep, find, cat) with faster modern alternatives.

CLI Speed Tools

Overview

Modern CLI tools provide 10-100x speed improvements over standard utilities while adding useful features like git status, syntax highlighting, and fuzzy search.

Quick Reference

Task	Slow (avoid)	Fast (use)
List files	ls, ls -la	eza -la, eza --tree
Search content	grep -r, find	rg (ripgrep)
Find files	find	fd
View files	cat	bat
Fuzzy search	—	fzf
Kill processes	kill, pkill	fk (fkill)
Dir navigation	cd everywhere	z (frequency-based)

When to Use

digraph cli_speed {
    "Need to list/search files?" [shape=diamond];
    "Task: list directory" [shape=box];
    "Task: search file contents" [shape=box];
    "Task: find files by name" [shape=box];
    "Task: view file contents" [shape=box];

    "Need to list/search files?" -> "Task: list directory" [label="list"];
    "Need to list/search files?" -> "Task: search file contents" [label="search content"];
    "Need to list/search files?" -> "Task: find files by name" [label="find by name"];
    "Need to list/search files?" -> "Task: view file contents" [label="view"];
}

Core Tools

EZA (Modern ls)

# Detailed list with icons, git status, dirs first
eza -la --icons --git --group-directories-first

# Tree view (2 levels deep)
eza --tree --level=2 --git --icons

Ripgrep (rg)

# Search for pattern in all files
rg "pattern"

# Case-insensitive search with context
rg "pattern" -i -C 2

# Search specific file types
rg "pattern" -t ts -t js

FD (Fast find)

# Find files by name
fd "filename"

# Find by extension
fd "\.ts$"

# Include hidden files
fd "pattern" --hidden

BAT (Enhanced cat)

# View file with syntax highlighting
bat filename.txt

# View specific lines
bat filename.txt -l 10-20

FZF (Fuzzy finder)

# Interactive file selection
fzf

# Pipe into fzf for selection
fd | fzf

Implementation

These tools should be pre-installed in the environment. Check availability before use:

# Verify tools are available
command -v eza && echo "eza available"
command -v rg && echo "ripgrep available"
command -v fd && echo "fd available"
command -v bat && echo "bat available"

Common Mistakes

Mistake	Fix
Using ls -la	Use eza -la or l alias
Using grep -r "pattern"	Use rg "pattern"
Using find . -name "*.js"	Use fd "\.js$"
Using cat file.txt	Use bat file.txt
Forgetting --hidden	Add it for fd/rg to search hidden files

Real-World Impact

• 10-100x faster than standard tools on large codebases
• Git status built-in to directory listings
• Syntax highlighting for code viewing
• Fuzzy search reduces typing and matches intent

Aliases Available

l      # eza -la with header, git, icons
la     # eza -la with classify, icons, git
ltree  # eza tree view
sf     # fzf file picker → Sublime
sgr    # ripgrep+fzf → open at line
fk     # fzf process killer