Quick Start Guide

Get started with Rawi in just a few minutes! This guide will walk you through your first AI conversation and essential features.

Prerequisites

Before starting, make sure you have:

✅ Rawi installed — See Installation Guide
✅ At least one provider configured — Run rawi configure if needed
✅ Terminal open — Any modern terminal will work

Quick Check

Verify your setup:

# Check version
rawi --version

# Verify configuration
rawi info

Your First Question

Let’s start with a simple question to test your setup:

rawi ask "What is the difference between JavaScript and TypeScript?"

What You’ll See

$ rawi ask "What is the difference between JavaScript and TypeScript?"

🤖 JavaScript and TypeScript are both programming languages, but TypeScript
is essentially JavaScript with static type checking. Here are the key
differences:

**JavaScript:**
- Dynamic typing (variables can change types)
- Runtime error detection
- No compilation step required
- Runs directly in browsers and Node.js
- More flexible but potentially error-prone

**TypeScript:**
- Static typing (types are checked at compile time)
- Compile-time error detection
- Compiles to JavaScript
- Better IDE support and autocomplete
- More verbose but safer for large applications

TypeScript is particularly useful for larger projects where type safety
helps prevent common programming errors.

🎉 Congratulations! You’ve just had your first AI conversation with Rawi.

Understanding Profiles

Profiles allow you to use different AI providers for different tasks. Let’s explore your current setup:

Check Your Current Profile

# Show current configuration
rawi configure --show

# List all profiles
rawi configure --list

Using Different Profiles

If you have multiple profiles configured:

# Use a specific profile
rawi ask "Explain React hooks" --profile work

# Set a default profile
rawi configure --profile personal --set-default

Creating Additional Profiles

# Create a work profile
rawi configure --profile work --provider anthropic --model claude-3-5-sonnet-20241022

# Create a local profile for privacy
rawi configure --profile local --provider ollama --model llama2

Using Act Templates

Act templates are pre-written prompts that make Rawi behave like specific experts:

List Available Templates

# Show all available act templates
rawi act --list

Using Templates

# Act as a code reviewer
rawi ask "Review this function" --act code_reviewer --file mycode.js

# Act as a Linux terminal
rawi ask "ls -la" --act linux_terminal

# Act as a technical writer
rawi ask "Document this API" --act technical_writer

Popular Templates

code_reviewer — Expert code analysis and suggestions
linux_terminal — Simulates Linux command execution
javascript_console — JavaScript interpreter behavior
english_translator — Translation and language help
plagiarism_checker — Content originality analysis
cyber_security_specialist — Security-focused advice

Session Management

Rawi automatically manages conversation sessions for context continuity:

Continue Conversations

# Start a conversation
rawi ask "Explain REST APIs"

# Continue the conversation (automatic session)
rawi ask "Now show me an example in Node.js"

# Explicitly continue a specific session
rawi ask "Add error handling" --continue abc123-def456

Session Commands

# List recent sessions
rawi history

# Show specific session
rawi history show abc123-def456

# Search conversations
rawi history --search "REST API"

Working with Files

Rawi can analyze and work with your files:

Single File Analysis

# Code review
rawi ask "Review this code for bugs" --file src/app.js

# Documentation
rawi ask "Generate README for this project" --file package.json

# Explanation
rawi ask "Explain what this function does" --file utils.py

Multiple Files

# Analyze multiple files
rawi ask "Review these components" --file src/Header.jsx --file src/Footer.jsx

# Compare files
rawi ask "What's the difference between these implementations?" --file old.js --file new.js

Supported File Types

Rawi works with any text-based file:

Source code (.js, .py, .java, .cpp, etc.)
Configuration files (.json, .yaml, .toml)
Documentation (.md, .txt, .rst)
Data files (.csv, .sql, .xml)

Shell Integration Basics

Enhance your terminal workflow with shell integration:

Useful Aliases

Add these to your shell profile (.bashrc, .zshrc):

# Quick ask alias
alias ask='rawi ask'

# Code review workflow
alias review='rawi ask --act code_reviewer'

# Terminal simulation
alias term='rawi ask --act linux_terminal'

# Quick continuation
alias chat='rawi ask --continue'

Command Integration

# Git commit message helper
git diff --cached | rawi ask "Write a commit message for these changes"

# Log analysis
tail -f /var/log/app.log | rawi ask "Analyze these logs for errors"

# Quick documentation
ls -la | rawi ask "Explain what these files do" --act technical_writer

Pipe Integration

# Pipe output to Rawi
echo "console.log('hello')" | rawi ask "Explain this code"

# Combine with other tools
curl -s https://api.github.com/repos/microsoft/vscode | rawi ask "Summarize this repo data"

Common Use Cases

Development Workflow

# Code review
rawi ask "Review this PR for security issues" --file changes.diff --act cyber_security_specialist

# Debug assistance
rawi ask "Why is this code throwing an error?" --file buggy.py

# Optimization
rawi ask "How can I optimize this database query?" --file slow_query.sql

Learning and Exploration

# Concept explanation
rawi ask "Explain microservices architecture with examples"

# Technology comparison
rawi ask "Compare React vs Vue.js for a new project" --profile work

# Tutorial creation
rawi ask "Create a beginner's guide to Docker" --act technical_writer

Content Creation

# Blog writing
rawi ask "Write a blog post about AI in software development" --act content_writer

# Documentation
rawi ask "Create API documentation for this endpoint" --file api.js --act technical_writer

# README generation
rawi ask "Generate a comprehensive README" --file package.json

Data Analysis

# CSV analysis
rawi ask "Analyze this sales data and find trends" --file sales.csv --act data_analyst

# Log interpretation
rawi ask "Find error patterns in these logs" --file error.log

# Performance review
rawi ask "Analyze this performance report" --file metrics.json

Configuration Best Practices

Multiple Provider Setup

# Fast responses for quick questions
rawi configure --profile quick --provider openai --model gpt-3.5-turbo --temperature 0.3

# Cost-effective with reasoning
rawi configure --profile budget --provider deepseek --model deepseek-chat --temperature 0.2

# European AI with GDPR compliance
rawi configure --profile europe --provider mistral --model mistral-large-latest --temperature 0.5

# Ultra-fast inference
rawi configure --profile speed --provider cerebras --model llama3.1-70b --temperature 0.7

# Detailed analysis
rawi configure --profile detailed --provider anthropic --model claude-3-5-sonnet-20241022 --temperature 0.1

# Local privacy-focused
rawi configure --profile local --provider ollama --model llama3.2

# Work environment
rawi configure --profile work --provider azure --model gpt-4 --resource-name company-ai

Environment-Specific Profiles

# Development environment
rawi configure --profile dev --provider openai --model gpt-4o --temperature 0.2

# Production support
rawi configure --profile prod --provider anthropic --model claude-3-5-sonnet-20241022 --temperature 0.1

# Research and experimentation
rawi configure --profile research --provider google --model gemini-1.5-pro --temperature 0.8

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Command not found:

# Verify installation
which rawi
rawi --version

No providers configured:

# Run interactive configuration
rawi configure

# Check current status
rawi info

API key issues:

# Test configuration
rawi configure --test

# Reconfigure provider
rawi configure --provider openai --api-key sk-new-key

Session not found:

# List available sessions
rawi history

# Start new session
rawi ask "Hello" --new-session

Getting Help

# Command help
rawi --help
rawi ask --help

# Provider information
rawi info --providers

# Debug mode
rawi --debug ask "test question"

Next Steps

Now that you’re comfortable with the basics:

Explore Advanced Features:
Learn Workflows:
Configure More Providers:
- Supported Providers
- Environment Variables
Join the Community:
- GitHub Discussions
- Report Issues

Quick Reference

Essential Commands

# Configuration
rawi configure                          # Interactive setup
rawi configure --list                   # List profiles
rawi info                              # System information

# Conversations
rawi ask "question"                     # Basic question
rawi ask "question" --file code.js      # With file context
rawi ask "question" --act expert        # With act template
rawi ask "question" --profile work      # Specific profile

# History
rawi history                           # List sessions
rawi history --search "keyword"        # Search conversations
rawi history show session-id           # Show specific session

# Templates
rawi act --list                        # List all templates
rawi act --search "code"               # Search templates

Useful Aliases

alias ask='rawi ask'
alias review='rawi ask --act code_reviewer'
alias explain='rawi ask --act explainer'
alias fix='rawi ask --act debugger'

Happy chatting with AI! 🤖✨

TypeScript:

Superset of JavaScript with static typing
Compile-time type checking
Compiles to JavaScript
Helps catch errors early in development
Better tooling and IDE support

The main advantage of TypeScript is that it helps prevent common programming errors by catching them during development rather than at runtime.

## Understanding Profiles

Profiles let you use different AI providers and settings for different projects:

```bash
# List available profiles
rawi configure --list

# Create a new profile for work projects
rawi configure --profile work --provider openai --model gpt-4

# Use a specific profile
rawi ask --profile work "How do I optimize this SQL query?"

Using Act Templates

Act templates transform your AI into specialized experts:

# Browse available templates
rawi act --list

# Use a template for code review
rawi ask --act code-reviewer "Review this Python function for improvements"

# Get help with Linux commands
rawi ask --act linux-terminal "Find all files larger than 100MB"

Popular Templates

software-engineer — General development help
code-reviewer — Code analysis and improvements
linux-terminal — Command line assistance
technical-writer — Documentation help
data-scientist — Data analysis and visualization

Session Management

Sessions maintain conversation context across multiple questions:

# Start a new session
rawi ask --new-session "I'm building a REST API in Node.js"

# Continue the conversation (Rawi remembers the context)
rawi ask "What's the best way to handle authentication?"
rawi ask "How do I add rate limiting?"

# List your sessions
rawi history --sessions

# Continue a previous session
rawi ask --session abc123 "Can you explain JWT tokens?"

Shell Integration Basics

Rawi works perfectly with shell pipes and redirects:

# Analyze log files
tail -f app.log | rawi ask "Summarize any errors in this log"

# Code analysis
cat src/app.js | rawi ask --act code-reviewer "Review this code"

# Save AI responses
rawi ask "Explain Docker containers" > docker-notes.txt

# Process data
curl -s api/data.json | rawi ask "Analyze this JSON data"

Essential Commands

Here are the commands you’ll use most often:

# Basic question
rawi ask "your question here"

# With template
rawi ask --act template-name "your question"

# With profile
rawi ask --profile work "your question"

# Continue session
rawi ask --session session-id "follow-up question"

# Get help
rawi --help
rawi ask --help

Next Steps

Now that you’re familiar with the basics:

Explore Templates — Run rawi act --list to see all available expert templates
Set Up Multiple Profiles — Configure different providers for different projects
Learn Advanced Features — Check out Shell Integration and Workflows
Join the Community — Visit our GitHub repository for updates and discussions

Common First-Time Issues

“No provider configured”

rawi configure  # Run interactive setup

“API key not found”

rawi configure --provider openai --api-key your-key-here

“Command not found”

npm install -g rawi  # Reinstall globally

Happy coding with Rawi! 🚀