The JSON output section was misleading — it claimed the binary emits
exit_code, command, timestamp, output_format, schema_version, and nested
error objects. The binary actually emits v1.0 flat shape (kind at top-level,
error as string, no common metadata fields).
Updated section:
- Documents actual v1.0 success and error envelope shapes
- Lists known issues (missing fields, overloaded kind, flat error)
- Shows how to dispatch on v1.0 (check type=='error' before reading kind)
- Warns users NOT to rely on kind alone
- Links to FIX_LOCUS_164.md for migration plan
- Explains Phase 1/2/3 timeline for v2.0 adoption
This is a doc-only fix that makes USAGE.md truthful about the current behavior
while preparing users for the coming schema migration.
Cycle #25 ships navigation improvements connecting USAGE (setup/interactive)
to ERROR_HANDLING.md (subprocess/orchestration patterns).
Before: USAGE.md had JSON scripting mention but no link to error-handling guide.
New users reading USAGE would see JSON is available, but wouldn't discover
the error-handling pattern without accidentally finding ERROR_HANDLING.md.
After: Two strategic cross-links:
1. Top-level tip box: "Building orchestration code? See ERROR_HANDLING.md"
2. JSON scripting section expanded with examples + link to unified pattern
Changes to USAGE.md:
- Added TIP callout near top linking to ERROR_HANDLING.md
- Expanded "JSON output for scripting" section:
- Explains what the envelope contains (exit_code, command, timestamp, fields)
- Added 3 command examples (prompt, load-session, turn-loop)
- Added callout for dispatchers/orchestrators pointing to ERROR_HANDLING pattern
Impact: Operators reading USAGE for "how do I call claw from scripts?" now
immediately see the canonical answer (ERROR_HANDLING.md) instead of having
to reverse-engineer it from code examples.
No code changes. Pure navigation/documentation.
Continues the documentation-governance pattern: the work protocol (14 clawable
commands) has a consumption guide (ERROR_HANDLING.md), and that guide is now
reachable from the main entry point (USAGE.md + README.md top nav).
## Problem
Three interactive slash commands are documented in `claw --help` but have no
corresponding section in USAGE.md:
- `/ultraplan [task]` — Run a deep planning prompt with multi-step reasoning
- `/teleport <symbol-or-path>` — Jump to a file or symbol by searching the workspace
- `/bughunter [scope]` — Inspect the codebase for likely bugs
New users see these commands in the help output but don't know:
- What each command does
- How to use it
- When to use it vs. other commands
- What kind of results to expect
## Fix
Added new section "Advanced slash commands (Interactive REPL only)" to USAGE.md
with documentation for all three commands:
1. **`/ultraplan`** — multi-step reasoning for complex tasks
- Example: `/ultraplan refactor the auth module to use async/await`
- Output: structured plan with numbered steps and reasoning
2. **`/teleport`** — navigate to a file or symbol
- Example: `/teleport UserService`, `/teleport src/auth.rs`
- Output: file content with the requested symbol highlighted
3. **`/bughunter`** — scan for likely bugs
- Example: `/bughunter src/handlers`, `/bughunter` (all)
- Output: list of suspicious patterns with explanations
## Impact
Users can now discover these commands and understand when to use them without
having to guess or search external sources. Bridges the gap between `--help`
output and full documentation.
Also filed ROADMAP #155 documenting the gap.
Closes ROADMAP #155.
Add two missing sections documenting the recently-fixed commands:
- **Initialize a repository**: Shows both text and JSON output modes for
`claw init`. Explains that structured JSON fields (created[], updated[],
skipped[], artifacts[]) allow claws to detect per-artifact state without
substring-matching prose. Documents idempotency.
- **Inspect worker state**: Documents `claw state` and the prerequisite
that a worker must have executed at least once. Includes the helpful error
message and remediation hints (claw or claw prompt <text>) so users
discovering the command for the first time see actionable guidance.
These sections complement the product fixes in #142 (init JSON structure)
and #139 (state error actionability) by documenting the contract from a
user perspective.
Related: ROADMAP #142 (structured init output), #139 (worker-state discoverability).
USAGE.md now documents:
- for machine-readable diagnostics
- Note about parse-time rejection of invalid suffix args (post-#127 fix)
Verifies that diagnostic verbs support JSON output for scripting,
and documents the behavior change from #127 (invalid args rejected
at parse time instead of falling through to prompt dispatch).
Refs: #127
The ROADMAP #37 code path was correct, but the Rust and usage guides still
advertised `claw login` / `claw logout` and OAuth-login wording after the
command surface had been removed. This follow-up updates both docs to point
users at `ANTHROPIC_API_KEY` or `ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN` only and removes the
stale command examples.
Constraint: Prior follow-up review rejected the closeout until user-facing auth docs matched the landed behavior
Rejected: Leave docs stale because runtime behavior was already correct | contradicts shipped CLI and re-opens support confusion
Confidence: high
Scope-risk: narrow
Reversibility: clean
Directive: When auth policy changes, update both rust/README.md and USAGE.md in the same change as the code surface
Tested: cargo fmt --all --check; cargo clippy --workspace --all-targets -- -D warnings; cargo test --workspace
Not-tested: External rendered-doc consumers beyond repository markdown
Two live users in #claw-code on 2026-04-08 hit adjacent auth confusion:
varleg set OPENAI_API_KEY for OpenRouter but prefix routing didn't
activate without openai/ model prefix, and stanley078852 put sk-ant-*
in ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN (Bearer path) instead of ANTHROPIC_API_KEY
(x-api-key path) and got 401 Invalid bearer token.
Changes:
1. ApiError::MissingCredentials gained optional hint field (error.rs)
2. anthropic_missing_credentials_hint() sniffs OPENAI/XAI/DASHSCOPE
env vars and suggests prefix routing when present (providers/mod.rs)
3. All 4 Anthropic auth paths wire the hint helper (anthropic.rs)
4. 401 + sk-ant-* in bearer token detected and hint appended
5. 'Which env var goes where' section added to USAGE.md
Tests: unit tests for all three improvements (no HTTP calls needed).
Workspace: all tests green, fmt clean, clippy warnings-only.
Source: live users varleg + stanley078852 in #claw-code 2026-04-08.
Co-authored-by: gaebal-gajae <gaebal-gajae@layofflabs.com>
Document the qwen/ and qwen- prefix routing added in 3ac97e6. Users
in Discord #clawcode-get-help (web3g, Renan Klehm, matthewblott) kept
hitting ambient-credential misrouting because the docs only showed
the OPENAI_BASE_URL pattern without explaining that model-name prefix
wins over env-var presence.
Added:
- DashScope usage section with qwen/qwen-max and bare qwen-plus examples
- DashScope row in provider matrix table
- Reasoning model sanitization note (qwen-qwq, qwq-*, *-thinking)
- Explicit statement that model-name prefix wins over ambient creds
- Anthropic-compat (ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL + ANTHROPIC_AUTH_TOKEN)
- OpenAI-compat (OPENAI_BASE_URL + OPENAI_API_KEY)
- ollama example with concrete curl
- OpenRouter example with model selection
Addresses community requests for local model setup guidance.
The root and Rust-facing docs now point readers at a single task-oriented usage guide with build, auth, CLI, session, and parity-harness examples. This also fixes stale workspace references and updates the Rust workspace inventory to match the current crate set.
Constraint: Existing README copy still referenced the old dev/rust status and needed to stay lightweight
Rejected: Fold all usage details into README.md only | too much noise for the landing page
Confidence: high
Scope-risk: narrow
Reversibility: clean
Directive: Keep USAGE examples aligned with when CLI flags change
Tested: cargo build --workspace; cargo test --workspace
Not-tested: External links and rendered Markdown in GitHub UI
