|
| 1 | +--- |
| 2 | +sidebar_position: 99 |
| 3 | +title: FAQ |
| 4 | +description: Frequently asked questions about ralph-starter - AI-powered autonomous coding |
| 5 | +keywords: [faq, questions, help, troubleshooting, support] |
| 6 | +--- |
| 7 | + |
| 8 | +# Frequently Asked Questions |
| 9 | + |
| 10 | +## General |
| 11 | + |
| 12 | +### What is ralph-starter? |
| 13 | + |
| 14 | +ralph-starter is a CLI tool that runs autonomous AI coding loops. Give it a task or specification, and it will build production-ready code automatically using Claude Code or other AI coding agents. |
| 15 | + |
| 16 | +### What is Ralph Wiggum? |
| 17 | + |
| 18 | +Ralph Wiggum is a technique for running AI coding agents in autonomous loops until tasks are completed. Instead of prompting back and forth with an AI, you give it a task and let it iterate until done. ralph-starter makes this technique accessible to everyone. |
| 19 | + |
| 20 | +### Do I need to be a developer to use ralph-starter? |
| 21 | + |
| 22 | +No. ralph-starter includes an interactive wizard that guides anyone through creating projects. Just run `ralph-starter` with no arguments and follow the prompts. |
| 23 | + |
| 24 | +### Is ralph-starter free? |
| 25 | + |
| 26 | +ralph-starter is open source and free to use. However, it uses AI APIs (like Anthropic's Claude) which may have associated costs depending on your usage. |
| 27 | + |
| 28 | +--- |
| 29 | + |
| 30 | +## Installation |
| 31 | + |
| 32 | +### How do I install ralph-starter? |
| 33 | + |
| 34 | +```bash |
| 35 | +npm install -g ralph-starter |
| 36 | +``` |
| 37 | + |
| 38 | +Or use without installing: |
| 39 | + |
| 40 | +```bash |
| 41 | +npx ralph-starter |
| 42 | +``` |
| 43 | + |
| 44 | +### What are the system requirements? |
| 45 | + |
| 46 | +- Node.js 18 or higher |
| 47 | +- npm or yarn |
| 48 | +- Git (optional, for version control features) |
| 49 | +- Claude Code CLI (for AI coding features) |
| 50 | + |
| 51 | +### How do I update ralph-starter? |
| 52 | + |
| 53 | +```bash |
| 54 | +npm update -g ralph-starter |
| 55 | +``` |
| 56 | + |
| 57 | +--- |
| 58 | + |
| 59 | +## Usage |
| 60 | + |
| 61 | +### How do I start a new project? |
| 62 | + |
| 63 | +Run the interactive wizard: |
| 64 | + |
| 65 | +```bash |
| 66 | +ralph-starter |
| 67 | +``` |
| 68 | + |
| 69 | +Or specify a task directly: |
| 70 | + |
| 71 | +```bash |
| 72 | +ralph-starter run "build a todo app with React" |
| 73 | +``` |
| 74 | + |
| 75 | +### What is Idea Mode? |
| 76 | + |
| 77 | +Idea Mode helps you brainstorm project ideas when you don't know what to build: |
| 78 | + |
| 79 | +```bash |
| 80 | +ralph-starter ideas |
| 81 | +``` |
| 82 | + |
| 83 | +It uses AI to generate project suggestions based on your interests, skills, or trending technologies. |
| 84 | + |
| 85 | +### Can I fetch specifications from external tools? |
| 86 | + |
| 87 | +Yes. ralph-starter supports fetching specs from: |
| 88 | + |
| 89 | +- **GitHub Issues**: `ralph-starter run --from github --project owner/repo` |
| 90 | +- **Linear**: `ralph-starter run --from linear --label "ready"` |
| 91 | +- **Notion**: `ralph-starter run --from notion --project "Specs Database"` |
| 92 | +- **URLs**: `ralph-starter run --from https://example.com/spec.md` |
| 93 | +- **Local files**: `ralph-starter run --from ./requirements.pdf` |
| 94 | + |
| 95 | +### How do I configure API keys? |
| 96 | + |
| 97 | +Use the config command: |
| 98 | + |
| 99 | +```bash |
| 100 | +ralph-starter config set linear.apiKey lin_api_xxxx |
| 101 | +ralph-starter config set notion.token secret_xxxx |
| 102 | +ralph-starter config set github.token ghp_xxxx |
| 103 | +``` |
| 104 | + |
| 105 | +Or set environment variables: |
| 106 | + |
| 107 | +```bash |
| 108 | +export LINEAR_API_KEY=lin_api_xxxx |
| 109 | +export NOTION_API_KEY=secret_xxxx |
| 110 | +export GITHUB_TOKEN=ghp_xxxx |
| 111 | +``` |
| 112 | + |
| 113 | +--- |
| 114 | + |
| 115 | +## Integrations |
| 116 | + |
| 117 | +### How do I connect GitHub? |
| 118 | + |
| 119 | +GitHub integration uses the `gh` CLI. If you're logged into `gh`, no additional setup is needed: |
| 120 | + |
| 121 | +```bash |
| 122 | +gh auth login |
| 123 | +ralph-starter source test github |
| 124 | +``` |
| 125 | + |
| 126 | +### How do I connect Linear? |
| 127 | + |
| 128 | +1. Get your API key from [linear.app/settings/api](https://linear.app/settings/api) |
| 129 | +2. Configure ralph-starter: |
| 130 | + |
| 131 | +```bash |
| 132 | +ralph-starter config set linear.apiKey lin_api_xxxx |
| 133 | +ralph-starter source test linear |
| 134 | +``` |
| 135 | + |
| 136 | +### How do I connect Notion? |
| 137 | + |
| 138 | +1. Create an integration at [notion.so/my-integrations](https://www.notion.so/my-integrations) |
| 139 | +2. Share your pages/databases with the integration |
| 140 | +3. Configure ralph-starter: |
| 141 | + |
| 142 | +```bash |
| 143 | +ralph-starter config set notion.token secret_xxxx |
| 144 | +ralph-starter source test notion |
| 145 | +``` |
| 146 | + |
| 147 | +### Can I use public Notion pages without authentication? |
| 148 | + |
| 149 | +Yes. For public Notion pages, use the URL source: |
| 150 | + |
| 151 | +```bash |
| 152 | +ralph-starter run --from https://notion.so/Your-Public-Page-abc123 |
| 153 | +``` |
| 154 | + |
| 155 | +Note: Content extraction is limited for public pages since Notion renders client-side. |
| 156 | + |
| 157 | +--- |
| 158 | + |
| 159 | +## MCP Server |
| 160 | + |
| 161 | +### What is the MCP server? |
| 162 | + |
| 163 | +ralph-starter can run as an MCP (Model Context Protocol) server, allowing AI assistants like Claude Desktop to use its capabilities directly. |
| 164 | + |
| 165 | +### How do I use ralph-starter with Claude Desktop? |
| 166 | + |
| 167 | +Add this to your Claude Desktop config (`~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json`): |
| 168 | + |
| 169 | +```json |
| 170 | +{ |
| 171 | + "mcpServers": { |
| 172 | + "ralph-starter": { |
| 173 | + "command": "npx", |
| 174 | + "args": ["ralph-starter", "mcp"] |
| 175 | + } |
| 176 | + } |
| 177 | +} |
| 178 | +``` |
| 179 | + |
| 180 | +--- |
| 181 | + |
| 182 | +## Troubleshooting |
| 183 | + |
| 184 | +### "Command not found: ralph-starter" |
| 185 | + |
| 186 | +Ensure npm global binaries are in your PATH: |
| 187 | + |
| 188 | +```bash |
| 189 | +export PATH="$PATH:$(npm config get prefix)/bin" |
| 190 | +``` |
| 191 | + |
| 192 | +Or use npx instead: |
| 193 | + |
| 194 | +```bash |
| 195 | +npx ralph-starter |
| 196 | +``` |
| 197 | + |
| 198 | +### "Source test failed" |
| 199 | + |
| 200 | +1. Verify your API key is correct |
| 201 | +2. Check the key hasn't expired |
| 202 | +3. Ensure you have the required permissions |
| 203 | + |
| 204 | +```bash |
| 205 | +ralph-starter config set linear.apiKey <new-key> |
| 206 | +ralph-starter source test linear |
| 207 | +``` |
| 208 | + |
| 209 | +### "No items found" when fetching from a source |
| 210 | + |
| 211 | +- **Linear**: Make sure you have issues matching your filter |
| 212 | +- **Notion**: Ensure the page/database is shared with your integration |
| 213 | +- **GitHub**: Check the repo exists and you have access |
| 214 | + |
| 215 | +### Where are credentials stored? |
| 216 | + |
| 217 | +Credentials are stored in `~/.ralph-starter/sources.json`. This file has user-only permissions (600). Never commit this file to version control. |
| 218 | + |
| 219 | +--- |
| 220 | + |
| 221 | +## Contributing |
| 222 | + |
| 223 | +### How can I contribute to ralph-starter? |
| 224 | + |
| 225 | +1. Fork the repository on GitHub |
| 226 | +2. Create a feature branch |
| 227 | +3. Make your changes |
| 228 | +4. Submit a pull request |
| 229 | + |
| 230 | +See the [contributing guide](https://github.com/rubenmarcus/ralph-starter/blob/main/CONTRIBUTING.md) for details. |
| 231 | + |
| 232 | +### How do I report bugs? |
| 233 | + |
| 234 | +Open an issue on GitHub: [github.com/rubenmarcus/ralph-starter/issues](https://github.com/rubenmarcus/ralph-starter/issues) |
| 235 | + |
| 236 | +--- |
| 237 | + |
| 238 | +## More Questions? |
| 239 | + |
| 240 | +- Check the [full documentation](/docs/intro) |
| 241 | +- Ask on [GitHub Discussions](https://github.com/rubenmarcus/ralph-starter/discussions) |
| 242 | +- Open an [issue](https://github.com/rubenmarcus/ralph-starter/issues) |
0 commit comments