setup-node

Get a working Node.js LTS with npm and npx for the current user. Do it yourself and only ask the user for what needs a human. Talk to them in their language, short messages, no jargon (never say "PATH", "prefix" or "LTS" to them).

If you got this skill from a link instead of a local folder, install nothing else from the repo: download a file it links only when a step needs it, with curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Melvynx/ai-maxxing-skills/main/skills/setup-node/<path> -o <scratch>/<file> (for example scripts/install-node.sh), and read another skill it names only when you reach it, from https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Melvynx/ai-maxxing-skills/main/skills/<skill-name>/SKILL.md.

1. Check first: if node --version prints v20 or higher and npm --version works, say so and stop.

2. Find the OS with uname -s (Darwin is macOS, Linux is Linux); if it fails or PowerShell answers, it is Windows.

3. On macOS, make sure Homebrew is there: it is the one way every setup skill installs tools on a Mac, it also installs Apple's developer tools (Git), and it keeps everything up to date. Look for /opt/homebrew/bin/brew (Apple Silicon) or /usr/local/bin/brew (Intel), even if brew is not found. If neither exists, Homebrew needs the user's Mac password once, so you cannot run it yourself: ask them to open the Terminal app (Cmd+Space, type "Terminal"), paste the line below, press Enter, type their Mac password when asked (nothing shows while typing, that is normal), press Enter again when it asks, and say "done" when it finishes (5 to 15 minutes).

   /bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"
   

   If the Mac account is not an admin and the install refuses, skip Homebrew and pass --no-brew to the install scripts of every setup skill.

4. Install:

   • macOS and Linux: run scripts/install-node.sh. On macOS it uses brew install node and writes Homebrew into the shell config so new sessions find it; it exits with code 3 if Homebrew is missing (go back to step 3). On Linux, or with --no-brew, it downloads the official Node LTS into ~/.local/node with no admin password.
   • Windows: winget install --id OpenJS.NodeJS.LTS -e --accept-source-agreements --accept-package-agreements, then ask the user to close and reopen the Claude session.

   The current session does not see the new install yet: prefix your next commands with eval "$(/opt/homebrew/bin/brew shellenv)" (or /usr/local/bin/brew on Intel) on macOS, or export PATH="$HOME/.local/node/bin:$PATH" with the ~/.local install.

5. Make sure global installs work without admin rights: run npm config get prefix. If npm install -g fails with EACCES, run npm config set prefix ~/.local and make sure ~/.local/bin is in the shell config. Never use sudo npm.

6. Prove it: node --version && npm --version && npx --version, then npx -y cowsay ok prints a cow. Then check a new session finds it too: $SHELL -lic 'node --version' prints the same version; if not, fix the shell config before going on.

Reply with the Node version and where it is installed, in one line.