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Quickstart Guide

Get up and running with Stim in 5 minutes.

Prerequisites

  • Claude Code setup
  • Basic familiarity with command-line tools

Step 1: Installation

Quick install:

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/wess/stim/main/install.sh | sh

Or via Homebrew:

brew install wess/packages/stim

Verify it works:

stim version

Step 2: Your First Command

Create a simple .stim file:

# Create hello.stim
cat > hello.stim << 'EOF'
command hello {
  ask("What's your name?")
  wait_for_response()
  
  ask("Nice to meet you! What would you like to work on today?")
  wait_for_response()
  
  if (confirm("Ready to get started?")) {
    ask("Let's build something amazing!")
  }
}
EOF

Step 3: Install as a Claude Command

stim install hello.stim

This compiles and places the output in ~/.claude/commands/hello.md. Use --local to install to the current project instead.

To compile without installing (outputs to dist/):

stim compile hello.stim

Step 4: Use Your Command

In Claude Code, type:

/hello

Claude will now execute your interactive command workflow!

Step 5: Try a More Complex Example

Let's create a project planning command:

command quickplan {
  features = [
    "User authentication",
    "Data storage", 
    "API endpoints",
    "Frontend interface"
  ]
  
  ask("What are you building?")
  wait_for_response()
  
  ask("What's your tech stack preference?")
  wait_for_response()
  
  for feature in features {
    if (confirm("Do you need: " + feature + "?")) {
      ask("Any specific requirements for " + feature + "?")
      wait_for_response()
    }
  }
  
  create_file("PROJECT_PLAN.md", "project_plan_template")
  
  ask("Created your project plan! Ready to start implementing?")
}

Compile and use it:

stim install quickplan.stim
# Use with: /quickplan

Step 6: Try a Task

Spawn a subagent to handle a subtask:

command analyze {
  task explore "find all API endpoints" {
    ask("Search the codebase and list every API endpoint")
    wait_for_response()
  }

  ask("Analysis complete!")
}

Or run multiple tasks in parallel:

command full_scan {
  parallel {
    task explore "check frontend" {
      ask("What frontend frameworks and patterns are used?")
    }
    task explore "check backend" {
      ask("What backend frameworks and patterns are used?")
    }
  }
}

What's Next?

  • Tutorial - Comprehensive guide covering variables, control flow, tasks, and parallel execution
  • API Reference - Complete syntax documentation
  • Examples - Real-world command examples including multi-agent workflows

Common Issues

Command Not Found

If /hello doesn't work in Claude Code:

  1. Check that the file was created: ls ~/.claude/commands/hello.md
  2. Restart Claude Code
  3. Verify your .claude/commands/ directory exists

Compilation Errors

Most common issues:

  • Missing quotes: Use "string" not string
  • Unclosed braces: Every { needs a matching }
  • Invalid syntax: Check the Syntax Reference

Getting Help

  • Check FAQ for common questions
  • Look at working examples
  • File an issue if you find a bug

🎉 Congratulations! You've created your first Stim command. Now explore the full tutorial to learn advanced features.