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Command Line Interface

The readme-ai CLI supports multiple ways to generate documentation, from cloud LLM providers to local models. Choose your preferred method below.

Cloud LLM Providers

Generate documentation using OpenAI’s models:

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readmeai \
    --api openai \
    --output readmeai-openai.md \
    --repository https://github.com/eli64s/readme-ai

Default Model

The default model is gpt-3.5-turbo, offering the best balance between cost and performance. When using any model from the gpt-4 series and up, please monitor your costs and usage to avoid unexpected charges.

Use Anthropic’s Claude models:

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readmeai \
    --api anthropic \
    --model claude-3-5-sonnet-20240620 \
    --output readmeai-anthropic.md \
    --repository https://github.com/eli64s/readme-ai

Generate with Google’s Gemini models:

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readmeai \
    --api gemini \
    --model gemini-1.5-flash \
    --output readmeai-gemini.md \
    --repository https://github.com/eli64s/readme-ai

Local Options

Use locally hosted models with Ollama:

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readmeai \
    --api ollama \
    --model llama3.2 \
    --repository https://github.com/eli64s/readme-ai

Generate documentation for a local codebase:

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readmeai \
    --api openai \
    --repository /users/username/projects/myproject

Generate without using any LLM services:

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readmeai \
    --api offline \
    --output readmeai-offline.md \
    --repository https://github.com/eli64s/readme-ai

Advanced Usage

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readmeai \
    --repository https://github.com/eli64s/readme-ai \
    --output readmeai.md \
    --api openai \
    --model gpt-4 \
    --badge-color A931EC \
    --badge-style flat-square \
    --header-style compact \
    --navigation-style fold \
    --temperature 0.9 \
    --tree-depth 2 \
    --logo LLM \
    --emojis solar

Command Options

For a complete list of available options, use the --help flag:

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readmeai --help

You should see output similar to the following:

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Usage: readmeai [OPTIONS]

  Entry point for the readme-ai CLI application.

Options:
  -V, --version                   Show the version and exit.
  -a, --align [center|left|right]
                                  align for the README.md file header
                                  sections.
  --api [anthropic|gemini|ollama|openai|offline]
                                  LLM API service provider to power the README
                                  file generation.
  -bc, --badge-color TEXT         Primary color (hex code or name) to use for
                                  the badge icons.
  -bs, --badge-style [default|flat|flat-square|for-the-badge|plastic|skills|skills-light|social]
                                  Visual style of the badge icons used in the
                                  README file.
  --base-url TEXT                 Base URL for the LLM API service.
  -cw, --context-window INTEGER   Maximum number of tokens to use for the
                                  model's context window.
  -e, --emojis [default|minimal|ascension|fibonacci|harmony|prism|quantum|monochrome|unicode|atomic|cosmic|crystal|earth|fire|forest|nature|water|gradient|rainbow|solar|fun|vintage|zen|random]
                                  Emoji theme 'packs' for customizing header
                                  section titles.
  -hs, --header-style [ASCII|ASCII_BOX|BANNER|CLASSIC|CLEAN|COMPACT|CONSOLE|MODERN]
                                  README header style template options.
  -l, --logo [ANIMATED|BLACK|BLUE|GRADIENT|ORANGE|METALLIC|PURPLE|RAINBOW|TERMINAL|CUSTOM|LLM]
                                  Project logo for the README file.
  -ls, --logo-size TEXT           Project logo size.
  -m, --model TEXT                LLM API model to power the README file
                                  generation.
  -ns, --navigation-style [ACCORDION|BULLET|NUMBER|ROMAN]
                                  Navigation menu styles for the README table
                                  of contents.
  -o, --output TEXT               Output file path for the generated README
                                  file.
  -rl, --rate-limit INTEGER RANGE
                                  Number of requests per minute for the LLM
                                  API service.  [1<=x<=25]
  -r, --repository TEXT           Provide a repository URL (GitHub, GitLab,
                                  BitBucket) or local path.  [required]
  -sm, --system-message TEXT      System message to display in the README
                                  file.
  -t, --temperature FLOAT RANGE   Increasing temperature yields more
                                  randomness in text generation.  [x<=2.0]
  --top-p FLOAT RANGE             Top-p sampling probability for the model's
                                  generation.  [0.0<=x<=1.0]
  -td, --tree-max-depth INTEGER   Maximum depth of the directory tree
                                  generated for the README file.
  --help                          Show this message and exit.

See the CLI Reference for the full list of options and their descriptions.