@howaboua/pi-ask

Adds one agent-callable ask tool for human input. It handles free-text prompts, batched choices, review dispositions, and user-only handoffs without making the agent dump a report into chat first.

Install

pi install npm:@howaboua/pi-ask

Try it for one session:

pi -e npm:@howaboua/pi-ask

How it behaves

The agent can present several independently decidable prompts in one tabbed panel. Each prompt supports a short title, supporting evidence, one or more choices, free text, and an optional comment. Review findings become one prompt each, so you can fix, defer, or reject them without translating a wall of prose back into instructions.

For work only you can complete—sign-in, authorization, hardware access, or another manual step—the agent can open a handoff and wait until you mark it done or unable to complete.

When Pi runs inside Herdr with its Pi integration installed, an open ask panel marks the pane as blocked until you submit, dismiss, or abort it.

Other/rephrase is always available. Submit it blank when the prompt needs to be rephrased, split, or followed up instead of answered as written.

Prompt commands

• /fold [report] turns a long report or structured list into one interactive disposition prompt per item.
• /grill [idea] investigates an idea, asks successive decisions, and keeps the agreed plan in docs/.

Both templates are enabled by default. The extension creates ~/.pi/agent/ask.json on first load:

{
  "grill": true,
  "fold": true
}

Set either value to false, then run /reload, to hide that template. The same configuration applies when pi-ask is installed through @howaboua/pi-extensions or @howaboua/pi-stuff.

TUI controls

The panel uses Pi's active keybindings. The defaults are:

• Up / Down — move through choices, free text, and comments
• Enter — choose or edit the focused item, or save an edit
• Left / Right — move between prompts and the review tab
• Tab — advance, using Other/rephrase when the current prompt is unanswered
• Esc — dismiss the panel

Configure the corresponding tui.select.*, tui.editor.cursorLeft, tui.editor.cursorRight, and tui.input.* actions in Pi's keybindings.json.

The tool requires Pi's interactive TUI or RPC UI. It returns dismissal as a distinct result so the agent can stop asking rather than guessing.