Pi Coding Agent: Minimalist Terminal Workflows Training Course

Introduction to Pi

• Overview of Pi and its core philosophy of minimalism and control
• Comparison against Claude Code, Codex CLI, and Cursor
• The four native tools: read, write, edit, and bash
• Criteria for selecting Pi over more resource-intensive agents

Installation and Setup

• Installing Pi using npm and various package managers
• Configuring API keys for over 15 supported providers
• Setting up working directories and context files
• Running Pi in local and Docker environments

Core Terminal Workflows

• Generating code from straightforward prompts
• Precisely reading and modifying files
• Safely executing bash commands within the agent
• Managing session state and resetting context

Creating Custom Skills

• Exploring the TypeScript skill API
• Implementing custom read, write, and edit operations
• Integrating with bash execution for specialized tasks
• Testing and debugging skills independently

Prompt Templates and Themes

• Customizing system prompts for various languages and frameworks
• Developing reusable prompt templates to ensure team consistency
• Theming and packaging modules for easy sharing

Extending Pi with npm Packages

• Bundling skills into pi packages
• Publishing packages to npm and Git
• Installing community-contributed packages
• Managing dependency versions and compatibility

Provider Flexibility

• Switching between backends such as Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, and others
• Optimizing for cost, speed, and quality based on specific tasks
• Utilizing entirely local models for sensitive code

Practical Use Cases

• Workflows for automated testing and test generation
• Refactoring legacy code using custom skill chains
• Generating and maintaining documentation
• Integrating with CI while minimizing agent overhead

Security and Control

• Understanding the boundaries set by the 300-word system prompt
• Implementing manual approval for write operations
• Sandboxing bash execution in untrusted environments
• Auditing all agent actions

Summary and Next Steps

• Reviewing the principles of minimalism, control, and extensibility
• Accessing community resources and contribution guidelines
• Exploring advanced topics for experienced Pi users