Internet Archive Skill for Claude Code

A Claude Code skill that enables Claude to interact with the Internet Archive using the ia command-line tool. Upload, download, search, and manage content on archive.org.

Features

• Search the Internet Archive catalog with advanced query syntax
• Download files from any public archive item
• Upload files with proper metadata (requires account)
• Manage metadata for your uploaded items
• Automatic tool installation via uv or pipx if not present

Prerequisites

• Claude Code installed
• Python 3.9 or higher
• One of: uv, pipx, or pip (for installing the ia CLI)

Installation

Option 1: Plugin Marketplace (Recommended)

Install directly from within Claude Code:

/plugin marketplace add https://github.com/internetarchive/internet-archive-skills.git
/plugin install ia@internet-archive-skills

Option 2: Clone and Symlink (For Development)

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/internetarchive/internet-archive-skills.git
cd internet-archive-skills

# Create skills directory if it doesn't exist
mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills

# Symlink the skill
ln -s "$(pwd)/skills/ia" ~/.claude/skills/ia

Option 3: Direct Copy

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/internetarchive/internet-archive-skills.git

# Create skills directory and copy
mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills
cp -r internet-archive-skills/skills/ia ~/.claude/skills/

Option 4: Download Just the Skill

# Create skills directory
mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills/ia

# Download the skill file directly
curl -o ~/.claude/skills/ia/SKILL.md \
  https://raw.githubusercontent.com/internetarchive/internet-archive-skills/main/skills/ia/SKILL.md

Usage

Manual Invocation

Use the /ia command to explicitly invoke the skill:

/ia search for public domain books about astronomy
/ia download the apollo 11 mission photos
/ia help me upload my document to archive.org

Automatic Invocation

Claude will automatically use this skill when you mention Internet Archive-related tasks:

"Search the Internet Archive for NASA images"
"Download files from archive.org item sci-fi-collection"
"Help me archive this PDF to archive.org"

Examples

Searching

"Search Internet Archive for vintage computer manuals"
"Find public domain audiobooks by Mark Twain on archive.org"
"Search for items in the NASA collection"

Downloading

"Download the Gutenberg Bible scans from archive.org"
"Get all PDF files from item 'classic-literature-collection'"
"Download NASA Apollo mission images"

Uploading

"Help me upload my thesis to Internet Archive"
"Upload these photos to archive.org with proper metadata"
"Create a new archive item for my podcast episodes"

Configuration

The ia CLI tool requires configuration for upload operations. Claude will guide you through this process, but here's a quick overview:

1. Create an Internet Archive account at https://archive.org/account/signup
2. Get your S3-like API keys at https://archive.org/account/s3.php
3. Configure the CLI by running ia configure and entering your keys

Configuration is stored in ~/.config/ia.ini.

Alternatively, set environment variables:

export IA_ACCESS_KEY_ID="your-access-key"
export IA_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY="your-secret-key"

Plugin Structure

internet-archive-skills/
├── .claude-plugin/
│   └── plugin.json       # Plugin manifest
├── skills/
│   └── ia/
│       └── SKILL.md      # Main skill instructions
├── examples/
│   └── usage-examples.md
├── README.md
└── LICENSE

The SKILL.md file contains:

• Tool detection and installation instructions
• Authentication and configuration guide
• Complete command reference for search, download, upload, and metadata
• Best practices and error handling

Troubleshooting

Skill not recognized

1. Ensure the skill is in the correct location: ~/.claude/skills/ia/SKILL.md
2. Restart Claude Code or reload the conversation
3. Try explicit invocation with /ia

ia command not found

Claude will offer to install it for you. If you prefer manual installation:

# Using uv (recommended)
uv tool install internetarchive

# Using pipx
pipx install internetarchive

# Using pip
pip install internetarchive

Authentication errors

1. Check your credentials at https://archive.org/account/s3.php
2. Re-run ia configure to update settings
3. Verify config with ia configure --print

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit issues or pull requests.

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch
3. Make your changes
4. Test with Claude Code
5. Submit a pull request

Resources

• Internet Archive
• internetarchive Python Library
• Internet Archive API Documentation
• Claude Code Documentation

License

GNU Affero General Public License v3.0 (AGPL-3.0) - see LICENSE file for details.