Home / Companies / Speakeasy / Blog / Post Details
Content Deep Dive

Why and How we invested in building a best in class CLI

Blog post from Speakeasy

Post Details
Company
Date Published
Author
Chase Crumbaugh
Word Count
1,652
Language
English
Hacker News Points
-
Summary

In the blog post, the author discusses the revamp of a command-line interface (CLI) to create a more seamless and intuitive developer experience for SDK creation and management. The original product pivoted, leading to a patchwork user experience that necessitated a new foundational approach centered around a CLI. The redesign aims to align with users' file management workflows and establish a unified process for creating API artifacts. The project was influenced by the availability of Charm's libraries, which enhance terminal aesthetics and functionality, akin to React for terminal UI, enabling the team to build a sophisticated CLI experience. Key principles guiding this development include creating a conversational and simple interface, assuming no prior user knowledge, and adhering to clear guidelines for CLI design. The post also highlights how the company utilized Charm’s Bubble Tea and Lip Gloss libraries for terminal application frameworks and custom styling, respectively, alongside the newer Huh library for form building. The revamped CLI serves as the first step in overhauling the onboarding process, with future plans to integrate GitHub actions and provide synchronization features for production SDKs.