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cpojer

HN Digest

by cpojer · GitHub ↗ · v1.0.1
cross-platform ⚠ suspicious
2979
Downloads
1
Stars
14
Active Installs
2
Versions
Install in OpenClaw
/install hn-digest
Description
Fetch and send Hacker News front-page posts on demand. Use when the user asks for HN, says 'hn', 'pull HN', 'hn 10', or specifies a topic like 'hn health', 'hn hacking', or 'hn tech'. Sends N (default 5) posts as individual messages with Title + Link. Exclude crypto.
README (SKILL.md)

HN Digest

Command format

Interpret a user message that starts with hn as a request for a Hacker News front-page digest.

Supported forms:

  • hn → default 5 posts
  • hn \x3Cn> → n posts
  • hn \x3Ctopic> → filter/boost by topic
  • hn \x3Cn> \x3Ctopic> → both
  • If the user asks for “more” after already seeing some (e.g. “show me top 10–15 since we already did top 10”), treat it as an offset request and use --offset (e.g. offset 10, count 10).

Topics:

  • tech (default)
  • health
  • hacking
  • life / lifehacks

Output requirements

  • Do not send any extra commentary/preamble/epilogue.
  • Send results as individual messages.
  • Each post message must be exactly:
    • first line: the post title
    • second line: \x3Cage> · \x3CcommentCount> comments (age like 45m ago, 6h ago, 3d ago)
    • third line: the Hacker News comments link (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=...)
  • After the post messages, send one final message that is the generated image.
    • If the chat provider requires non-empty text for media, use a minimal caption ..
  • Hard exclude crypto.

Procedure

  1. Parse n and topic from the user message.
  2. Fetch + rank items:
    • Run node skills/hn-digest/scripts/hn.mjs --count \x3Cn> --offset \x3Coffset> --topic \x3Ctopic> --format json.
    • Default offset is 0 unless the user explicitly asks for “more/next” after a previous batch.
  3. Send results as N individual messages in the required 3-line format.
  4. Then generate a delightful mood image via Nano Banana, inspired by the posts you just sent:
    • Use skills/hn-digest/scripts/mood_prompt.mjs to build a prompt from the JSON items.
    • Add 3–4 subtle Easter eggs derived from the post themes (no text/logos; keep it fun).
    • Generate and attach the image by running:
      • skills/hn-digest/scripts/generate_mood_nano_banana.sh ./tmp/hn-mood/hn-mood.png \x3Ctopic> \x3Cn> \x3Coffset>
    • Send the generated image as one additional message.

If fetching/ranking fails or returns 0 items:

  • Use https://news.ycombinator.com/ in the browser tool, pick N non-crypto items by judgment, and send them in the same 3-line format.
  • Still generate a mood image (general “HN tech deep dives” vibe) with a banana Easter egg.
Usage Guidance
Before installing or enabling this skill, consider the following: (1) The SKILL.md and registry metadata do NOT declare that an image-generation key is required, but the scripts will look for GEMINI_API_KEY (and fall back to reading ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json for nano-banana-pro.apiKey). Decide whether you are comfortable exposing that key or allowing the skill to read your OpenClaw config. (2) The skill will create a local Python virtualenv and pip-install google-genai and pillow — review those packages and be prepared for code to run on your machine. (3) There is an extra image routine (mood_image.py) that would use OPENAI_API_KEY; confirm whether that is intended or dead/leftover code. (4) If you want to proceed, ask the author to: a) explicitly document required env vars and config access in SKILL.md, b) avoid reading ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json (require an explicit env var instead), or c) remove unused credential-using files. If unsure, run the skill in a sandboxed environment or inspect/execute the scripts locally with empty or test credentials first.
Capability Analysis
Type: OpenClaw Skill Name: hn-digest Version: 1.0.1 The skill is classified as suspicious due to the `nano_banana_mood.py` script attempting to load an API key from `~/.openclaw/openclaw.json`. While this is plausibly for its own legitimate use (loading the 'nano-banana-pro' API key), it demonstrates the capability to access sensitive configuration files from the user's home directory, which is a high-risk permission. Other potential prompt injection vectors identified in `SKILL.md` are mitigated by robust argument validation in `hn.mjs` and careful prompt construction in `mood_prompt.mjs`.
Capability Assessment
⚠ Purpose & Capability
The skill claims no required credentials or config, but its included code expects a Gemini API key (GEMINI_API_KEY) and also contains an alternate image routine that would use OPENAI_API_KEY. The skill's purpose (HN digest + mood image) can justify needing an image-generation key, but the SKILL.md/registry metadata do not declare any required env vars or explain where keys must come from.
⚠ Instruction Scope
SKILL.md tells the agent to run bundled node and shell scripts which: call the HN Algolia API (expected), create a local Python venv and pip-install packages, and run a Python image generator. One image generator (nano_banana_mood.py) will attempt to read ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json to extract a nano-banana-pro apiKey. Reading another skill/agent config file is out-of-scope for a simple HN digest and is not declared in the instructions.
ℹ Install Mechanism
No centralized install spec, but the runtime shell script creates ./tmp/hn-venv and pip-installs google-genai and pillow from PyPI. This is traceable (PyPI) and not an arbitrary HTTP download, but it will write files to disk and execute third-party packages — moderate risk and should be disclosed.
⚠ Credentials
The code checks for GEMINI_API_KEY (env) and, if absent, reads ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json to find nano-banana-pro.apiKey. That means the skill can access stored agent/skill config and potentially other skills' API keys. The repository also contains mood_image.py which would use OPENAI_API_KEY (not referenced by the main generate script) — the presence of multiple credential paths with no declaration is disproportionate and surprising.
ℹ Persistence & Privilege
The skill is not force-included (always: false) and does not request to modify other skills. However, it does read ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json, which leaks a higher-privilege config surface to the skill at runtime — this is a privilege elevation of read-access to agent config and should be considered when enabling the skill.
How to Use
  1. Make sure OpenClaw is installed (local or Docker)
  2. Run the install command in chat: /install hn-digest
  3. After installation, invoke the skill by name or use /hn-digest
  4. Provide required inputs per the skill's parameter spec and get structured output
Version History
v1.0.1
hn-digest 1.0.1 - No functional or documentation changes; the version was updated without modifications to files or content.
v1.0.0
Fetch and send top Hacker News front-page posts on demand with topic filtering and delightful mood images. - Responds to user requests like "hn", "hn 10", or "hn health" with N (default 5) front-page posts (excluding crypto), each as an individual 3-line message. - Supports topic filters: tech (default), health, hacking, life/lifehacks. - Handles "more" requests using offset to continue from previous results. - After sending posts, generates and sends a mood image inspired by the topics, with playful Easter eggs. - Falls back to manual fetching and a default mood image if automated fetching fails.
Metadata
Slug hn-digest
Version 1.0.1
License —
All-time Installs 14
Active Installs 14
Total Versions 2
Frequently Asked Questions

What is HN Digest?

Fetch and send Hacker News front-page posts on demand. Use when the user asks for HN, says 'hn', 'pull HN', 'hn 10', or specifies a topic like 'hn health', 'hn hacking', or 'hn tech'. Sends N (default 5) posts as individual messages with Title + Link. Exclude crypto. It is an AI Agent Skill for Claude Code / OpenClaw, with 2979 downloads so far.

How do I install HN Digest?

Run "/install hn-digest" in the OpenClaw or Claude Code chat to install it in one step — no extra setup required.

Is HN Digest free?

Yes, HN Digest is completely free (open-source). You can download, install and use it at no cost.

Which platforms does HN Digest support?

HN Digest is cross-platform and runs anywhere OpenClaw / Claude Code is available (cross-platform).

Who created HN Digest?

It is built and maintained by cpojer (@cpojer); the current version is v1.0.1.

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