Title: Page 3 – Alex Kirk

---

 * 
   ## 󠀁[Adapting Tools to Your Needs with AI](https://alex.kirk.at/2025/10/14/adapting-tools-to-your-needs-with-ai/)󠁿
   
 * October 14, 2025
 * ![](https://alex.kirk.at/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/10/adbtuifm.png)
 * In past years, as a developer, for some features or the early stages of software,
   writing down the code felt like a chore. You knew what to do and you had to tediously
   spell it out. Of course, with AI tools like [Claude Code](https://www.claude.com/product/claude-code)(
   which I like in particular, the CLI approach appeals to me) this now is vastly
   better, and actually it’s quite easy to accidentally take it too far.
 * But here, I want to talk about something different: It happens that you search
   for a tool and then you come across something that almost does what you want,
   but not quite.
 * Before AI programming tools, you either had to be lucky to know the software 
   stack, or it must be a really important problem to you that you would try to 
   understand the codebase and make the modification you need.
 * Today, I can just use Claude Code to modify any tool how I like. So instead of
   turning away in frustration, I just ask Claude to help me fix what doesn’t work
   for me. How great is that?
 * A recent example for me has been transferring files to my Android Phone. [OpenMTP](https://openmtp.ganeshrvel.com/)
   exists but to me it has proven to be highly unrealiable, you need to remember
   to not have Preview open in macOS for it to work, and recently it didn’t complete
   a copy process but didn’t tell me about it. I only found out on the go that some
   files had not been copied.
 * So I realized, that I can use `adb` to push files to my phone using the debug
   mode. It’s very niche, I know, but it works. And then I realized a little UI 
   would be nice, and I discovered [darkhz’s adbtuifm](https://github.com/darkhz/adbtuifm).
   A tool written in Go but only tested on Linux, a file manager like Total Commander
   for the CLI that uses `adb` in the background.
 * And indeed, it didn’t really work well on macOS CLI. The left side appeared empty.
 * ![](https://alex.kirk.at/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/10/adbtuifm-before.png)
 * Hardly anything readable and the left side empty
 * But this is what it looks like today:
 * ![](https://alex.kirk.at/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/10/adbtuifm-1024x778.
   png)
 * My updated version of [adbtuifm](https://github.com/akirk/adbtuifm)
 * So I forked it and [adapted it to my needs](https://github.com/darkhz/adbtuifm/compare/master...akirk:adbtuifm:main):
    - It [now uses the current directory](https://github.com/darkhz/adbtuifm/commit/e2d75de31b06cb463f8b2e5e7254920a036ceda0)
      instead of the non-existent-on-macOS `/home`.
    - [Fixed the colors](https://github.com/darkhz/adbtuifm/commit/df5eafb6ecfb0e6af09b339d2428a633555adc3a)
      so that things are also readable in light mode.
    - [Introduced an ADB log pane](https://github.com/darkhz/adbtuifm/commit/d92b3224f5058d5b32af00fffd2d091c3d231111)
      to see what’s going on behind the scenes.
    - It now [shows size and last modification dates](https://github.com/darkhz/adbtuifm/commit/d0fb25fe438f4fec12119e9caeaf78d707d1d031).
    - Introduced [history navigation](https://github.com/darkhz/adbtuifm/commit/77731d3293b14850250707d82d3d83b904d89650).
    - Even [fixed a (tricky?) UI hang](https://github.com/darkhz/adbtuifm/commit/05344a29073b6bc18f1856c4f2d70add943d55ea)
      when deleting files.
 * The most important change for me probably was the first one, and, ok, I could
   have probably just changed the hardcoded string myself.
 * But it was such a joy to continue and make the tool nicer to use! Also, I don’t
   think I could have fixed that hanging UI before wasting too much time.
 * You can [try my version](https://github.com/akirk/adbtuifm), and maybe fork it
   and add more things you like yourself? I could send back a PR but maybe I won’t
   do it this time because my changes are opinionated and the repo [seems abandoned](https://github.com/darkhz/adbtuifm)
   with the last change in 2022.
 * 
   ###### Fediverse Reactions
   
    -  [ ⌊Mathew Attlee⌉ ](https://hachyderm.io/@codeinabox)
 *  -  [ ⌊Chuck Grimmett⌉ ](https://cagrimmett.com/likes/583bfb407c/)
 * [Code](https://alex.kirk.at/category/code/)
 * [adb](https://alex.kirk.at/tag/adb/), [Claude Code](https://alex.kirk.at/tag/claude-code/)
 * 
   ## 󠀁[Proposal: an Interactive Mode for phpcbf](https://alex.kirk.at/2025/09/29/proposal-an-interactive-mode-for-phpcbf/)󠁿
   
 * September 29, 2025
 * ![](https://alex.kirk.at/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2025/09/Screenshot-2025-09-
   30-at-13.33.36.png)
 * Did you ever get a little annoyed at `phpcs`? Maybe you’re like me: I like the
   idea of [PHP Code Sniffer](https://github.com/phpcsstandards/PHP_CodeSniffer)(
   phpcs), but I think the user experience has room for improvement:
 * Especially when trying to get larger amounts of PHP code to comply with the coding
   standards, it feels like this tool just scolds you and all you can do is to diligently
   work away on each and every violation that it discovers.
 * And you might have gotten yourself into such a situation because [you realized well into the project that you forgot an important ruleset](https://github.com/akirk/friends/pull/329),
   or when you’re merging codebases.
 * 
   ### Sniffs are Opinions
   
 * One important thing that we tend to forget: often we are in a position where 
   we can actually make the decisions which rules to follow and which not. A ruleset
   prepared by someone else might contain things we disagree with. Thus phpcs contains
   the ability to exclude sniffs via its phpcs.xml configuration file, and I think
   it’s ok to make use of that. But also, I think that phpcs could be more helpful
   to you in doing so.
 * When you encounter such an overly eager ruleset, you might complain that the 
   ruleset itself should be updated. But maybe you are not in a position to fight
   that battle, so you can just find a solution for yourself.
 * 
   ### phpcbf can help fix things
   
 * The PHP Code Sniffer project comes with two main executables: `phpcs`, and `phpcbf`.
   While `phpcs` complains, `phpcbf` tries to help you. Sniffs can provide auto-
   fixers for violations they encounter and `phpcbf` applies them for you. But oftentimes
   it seems like there should be an auto-fixer but in the end, you have to fix it
   yourself.
 * A side-note here: maintaining the phpcs project is certainly not a piece of cake
   since it’s a project heavily exposed to opinion. Many things have to be considered,
   and it looks like there has been agreement that an auto-fixer can only be added
   if there is a single and clear solution to the problem.
 * Thus, there are a number of sniffs where the resolution of a violation needs 
   a user decision. This decision could be complex, like you need to rearrange code,
   or add something that you forgot (like a type for a parameter). But I believe
   there are also decisions to make where it’s a matter of choosing between several
   options.
 * 
   ### User Decision Required
   
 * One example of this is `Squiz.Commenting.InlineComment.InvalidEndChar`: “Inline
   comments must end in full-stops, exclamation marks, or question marks.” Let’s
   not argue about its validity but about the reason it cannot be auto-fixed: There
   are multiple valid end chars and an auto-fixer cannot know which one is the right
   one here.
 * So, what happens if we make `phpcbf` interactive, so that it can ask the user
   to select one of the potential fixes, and then just goes ahead and makes them?
 * Or, if you realize that you disagree with this sniff: what if `phpcbf` will just
   quickly add an `<exclude ref="Sniff.Name"/>` to your `phpcs.xml`? Or it could
   help you just disable the rule for the file? Or just ignore this line?
 * Many IDEs actually already have some of these ways of dealing with violations,
   [either natively](https://www.jetbrains.com/help/phpstorm/using-php-code-sniffer.html#fixing-issues)
   or [through an extension](https://github.com/sdobreff/vscode-php-resolver/blob/main/README.md#phpcs-rules-ignore).
   Bringing them to phpcbf itself would make this available to a wider audience 
   and solutions could be baked in to sniffs.
 * 
   ### Interactive Mode
   
 * All of these thoughts culminate in this idea to make `phpcbf` interactive. I 
   didn’t know until recently that phpcs has an interactive mode, too. But all it
   does is to process a file and pauses to allow the user to edit the file, and 
   then to process it again. It assists you in checking, but not in fixing.
 * So, here is how this could work. Let’s assume this `test.php`:
 *     ```notranslate
       <?php
   
       //helo
       class test
       {
       echo 'hello';
       }
       ```
   
 * This file has some problems as `phpcs` tells you (the selection of Sniffs here
   is a bit arbitrary but to show the variety of options we’ll face):
 *  \e[1mFILE: test.php\e[0m ———————————————————————————————- \e[1mFOUND 6 ERRORS
   AFFECTING 4 LINES\e[0m ———————————————————————————————- 1 | \e[31mERROR\e[0m 
   | [ ] You must use “/**” style comments for a file comment 3 | \e[31mERROR\e[
   0m | [x] No space found before comment text; expected “// helo” but found “//
   helo” 3 | \e[31mERROR\e[0m | [ ] Inline comments must start with a capital letter
   3 | \e[31mERROR\e[0m | [ ] Inline comments must end in full-stops, exclamation
   marks, or question marks 4 | \e[31mERROR\e[0m | [ ] Test name must begin with
   a capital letter 6 | \e[31mERROR\e[0m | [x] Line indented incorrectly; expected
   at least 4 spaces, found 0 ———————————————————————————————- \e[1mPHPCBF CAN FIX
   THE 2 MARKED SNIFF VIOLATIONS AUTOMATICALLY\e[0m ———————————————————————————————-
 * As you can see, some violations can be fixed, most cannot. The reason for those
   is that there is no auto-fixer implemented for them, and often the reason is 
   that there is no one-and-only-way to fix this.
 * So let’s see how interactive mode would work here. In this first case I’d like
   to show a situation where there is no auto-fixer available. These would be the
   options:
 *  PHPCBF INTERACTIVE MODE – test.php ERRORS at line 1, column
   6: You must use “/**” style comments for a file comment Sniff: PEAR.Commenting.
   FileComment.WrongStyle (Not auto-fixable)  1> <?php  2[
   0m  3 //helo Choose an action: [i] Add a phpcs:ignore to this line (
   phpcs:ignore) [d] Disable this sniff for this file (phpcs:disable) [p] Project-
   wide: exclude this sniff in phpcs.xml [e] Edit the file manually [s] Skip this
   violation [q] Quit Action (default: edit):
 * Now let’s look at a case where an auto-fixer is available. In non-interactive
   mode, `phpcbf` would just fix it, but here you have the option to skip it, too.
   It would be nice if it even could preview the auto-fix:
 *  ERRORS at line 6, column 1: Line indented incorrectly; expected at 
   least 4 spaces, found 0 Sniff: Generic.WhiteSpace.ScopeIndent.Incorrect (
   Auto-fixable)  4 class test  5 {  6- echo ‘hello’;[
   0m  6+ echo ‘hello’;  7 }  8  Choose an action: [f]
   Fix automatically [i] Add a phpcs:ignore to this line (phpcs:ignore) [d] Disable
   this sniff for this file (phpcs:disable) [p] Project-wide: exclude this sniff
   in phpcs.xml [e] Edit the file manually [s] Skip this violation [q] Quit Action(
   default: auto-fix):
 * Now let’s look come back to our example from above where it seems like an auto-
   fixer could exist but it does not because there are multiple ways to fix it. 
   For this one, we’d have an interactive fixer that gives the user the choice how
   to fix it:
 *  ERRORS at line 3, column 1: Inline comments must end in full-stops,
   exclamation marks, or question marks Sniff: Squiz.Commenting.InlineComment.InvalidEndChar[
   36m(Interactive fixes available) Interactive Fix Options: [1] Append
   a .  1 <?php  2   3- // Helo  3+ // Helo.[
   90m 4 class test  5 { [2] Append a !  1 <?php  2 [
   0m  3- // Helo  3+ // Helo!  4 class test  5 {[
   0m [3] Append a ?  1 <?php  2   3- // Helo  3
   + // Helo?  4 class test  5 { [4] Remove comment  
   1 <?php  2   3- // Helo  4 class test  5 {[
   0m Choose an action: [1] Apply: Append a . [2] Apply: Append a ! [3] Apply: Append
   a ? [4] Apply: Remove comment [i] Add a phpcs:ignore to this line (phpcs:ignore)[
   d] Disable this sniff for this file (phpcs:disable) [p] Project-wide: exclude
   this sniff in phpcs.xml [e] Edit the file manually [s] Skip this violation [q]
   Quit Action (default: 1 “Append a .”):
 * One could argue that you can do all of this today but I think with such an interactive
   mode we can relieve much of the pain it causes to get a code base to comply by
   streamlining what you need to do already today anyway: go through each violation
   and try to fix it.
 * Some of the choices I haven’t described yet:
    - `i` would just append a `// phpcs:ignore Sniff.Name` to the line.
    - `d` would add a `// phpcs:disable Sniff.Name` at the beginning of the file.
    - `p` would add an `<exclude ref="Sniff.Name"/>` to your `phpcs.xml`.
    - `e` would open an editor at the line of the code
 * In summary, this is a proposal to improve the user experience. I think this could
   transform an experience where `phpcs` is the tool that scolds you, to the tool
   that assists you in unifying a codebase to certain standards.
 * Finally, expand this to see the whole run-down of an interactive `phpcbf -a` 
   session.
 *  ❯ bat test.php ───────┬──────────────────────────────────────────
   ────────────────────────────── │ File: test.php [
   38;5;246m───────┼────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
   ────────────  1 │ <?php 
   2 │  3 │ //[
   38;5;242mhelo  4 │ class[
   0mtest  5 │ { [
   38;5;246m 6 │ echo ’[
   0mhello’;  7 
   │ } ───────┴───────────────────────────────────
   ───────────────────────────────────── ❯ ./bin/phpcs test.php FILE: test.
   php ———————————————————————————————- FOUND 6 ERRORS AFFECTING 4 LINES[
   0m ———————————————————————————————- 1 | ERROR | [ ] You must use “/**”
   style comments for a file comment 3 | ERROR | [x] No space found before
   comment text; expected “// helo” but found “//helo” 3 | ERROR | [ ] 
   Inline comments must start with a capital letter 3 | ERROR | [ ] Inline
   comments must end in full-stops, exclamation marks, or question marks 4 | ERROR[
   0m | [ ] Test name must begin with a capital letter 6 | ERROR | [x] 
   Line indented incorrectly; expected at least 4 spaces, found 0 ———————————————————————————————-[
   1mPHPCBF CAN FIX THE 2 MARKED SNIFF VIOLATIONS AUTOMATICALLY ———————————————————————————————-❯./
   bin/phpcbf -a test.php PHPCBF INTERACTIVE MODE – test.php ERRORS[
   0m at line 1, column 6: You must use “/**” style comments for a file comment 
   Sniff: PEAR.Commenting.FileComment.WrongStyle (Not auto-fixable) 
   1> <?php  2   3 //helo Choose an action: [i] Add a phpcs:
   ignore to this line (phpcs:ignore) [d] Disable this sniff for this file (phpcs:
   disable) [p] Project-wide: exclude this sniff in phpcs.xml [e] Edit the file 
   manually [s] Skip this violation [q] Quit Action (default: edit): i Added phpcs:
   ignore comment to line 1 ——————————————————————————– ERRORS at line 
   6, column 1: Line indented incorrectly; expected at least 4 spaces, found 0 Sniff:
   Generic.WhiteSpace.ScopeIndent.Incorrect (Auto-fixable)  4 class
   test  5 {  6- echo ‘hello’;  6+ echo ‘hello’; [
   90m 7 }  8  Choose an action: [f] Fix automatically [i] Add a phpcs:
   ignore to this line (phpcs:ignore) [d] Disable this sniff for this file (phpcs:
   disable) [p] Project-wide: exclude this sniff in phpcs.xml [e] Edit the file 
   manually [s] Skip this violation [q] Quit Action (default: auto-fix): Auto-fixing…[
   32mFixed! ——————————————————————————– ERRORS at line 3, column 1:
   No space found before comment text; expected “// helo” but found “//helo” Sniff:
   Squiz.Commenting.InlineComment.NoSpaceBefore (Auto-fixable)  1 
   <?php  2   3- //helo  3+ // helo  4 class
   test  5 { Choose an action: [f] Fix automatically [i] Add a phpcs:
   ignore to this line (phpcs:ignore) [d] Disable this sniff for this file (phpcs:
   disable) [p] Project-wide: exclude this sniff in phpcs.xml [e] Edit the file 
   manually [s] Skip this violation [q] Quit Action (default: auto-fix): Auto-fixing…[
   32mFixed! ——————————————————————————– ERRORS at line 3, column 1:
   Inline comments must start with a capital letter Sniff: Squiz.Commenting.InlineComment.
   NotCapital (Interactive fixes available) Interactive Fix Options:[
   0m [1] Suggestion  1 <?php  2   3- // helo  3
   + // Helo  4 class test  5 { Choose an action: [1] Apply:
   Suggestion [i] Add a phpcs:ignore to this line (phpcs:ignore) [d] Disable this
   sniff for this file (phpcs:disable) [p] Project-wide: exclude this sniff in phpcs.
   xml [e] Edit the file manually [s] Skip this violation [q] Quit Action (default:
   1 “Capitalize first letter”): Applying option 1… Fixed! ——————————————————————————–[
   33mERRORS at line 3, column 1: Inline comments must end in full-stops, exclamation
   marks, or question marks Sniff: Squiz.Commenting.InlineComment.InvalidEndChar[
   36m(Interactive fixes available) Interactive Fix Options: [1] Append
   a .  1 <?php  2   3- // Helo  3+ // Helo.[
   90m 4 class test  5 { [2] Append a !  1 <?php  2 [
   0m  3- // Helo  3+ // Helo!  4 class test  5 {[
   0m [3] Append a ?  1 <?php  2   3- // Helo  3
   + // Helo?  4 class test  5 { [4] Remove comment  
   1 <?php  2   3- // Helo  4 class test  5 {[
   0m Choose an action: [1] Apply: Append a . [2] Apply: Append a ! [3] Apply: Append
   a ? [4] Apply: Remove comment [i] Add a phpcs:ignore to this line (phpcs:ignore)[
   d] Disable this sniff for this file (phpcs:disable) [p] Project-wide: exclude
   this sniff in phpcs.xml [e] Edit the file manually [s] Skip this violation [q]
   Quit Action (default: 1 “Append a .”): 2 Fixing with option 2… Fixed!——————————————————————————–[
   33mERRORS at line 4, column 7: Test name must begin with a capital letter
   Sniff: PEAR.NamingConventions.ValidClassName.StartWithCapital (Interactive
   fixes available) Interactive Fix Options: [1] Suggestion  2 [
   0m  3 // Helo!  4- class test  4+ class Test 
   5 {  6 echo ‘hello’; Choose an action: [1] Apply: Suggestion [i]
   Add a phpcs:ignore to this line (phpcs:ignore) [d] Disable this sniff for this
   file (phpcs:disable) [p] Project-wide: exclude this sniff in phpcs.xml [e] Edit
   the file manually [s] Skip this violation [q] Quit Action (default: 1 “Capitalize
   first letter”): Applying option 1… Fixed! ——————————————————————————–[
   1mPHPCBF RESULT SUMMARY ———————————————————————- FILE FIXED REMAINING[
   0m ———————————————————————- test.php 5 0 ———————————————————————- A TOTAL
   OF 5 ERRORS WERE FIXED IN 1 FILE ———————————————————————- ❯ bat test.php [
   38;5;246m───────┬────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
   ──────────── │ File: test.php ───────┼─
   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── [
   38;5;246m 1 │ <?php //[
   0m phpcs:ignore PEAR.Commenting.FileComment.WrongStyle 
   2 │  3 │ //[
   38;5;242m Helo!  4 │ class[
   38;5;231m Test  5 │ {[
   0m  6 │  echo[
   0m’hello’; 
   7 │ } ───────┴──────────────────
   ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 * For comparison, this is what regular mode produces:
 *  ❯ ./bin/phpcbf test.php PHPCBF RESULT SUMMARY ———————————————————————-[
   1mFILE FIXED REMAINING ———————————————————————- test.php 2 4 ———————————————————————-[
   1mA TOTAL OF 2 ERRORS WERE FIXED IN 1 FILE ———————————————————————- ❯ bat
   test.php ───────┬─────────────────────────────────────────────────
   ─────────────────────── │ File: test.php 
   ───────┼─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
   ───  1 │ <?php  2[
   0m │  3 │ //
   helo  4 │ class [
   0mtest  5 │ { [
   38;5;246m 6 │  echo[
   0m’hello’; 
   7 │ } ───────┴──────────────────
   ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 * You can find [the issue I created about this in the PHP CodeSniffer repo](https://github.com/PHPCSStandards/PHP_CodeSniffer/issues/1285),
   and [my implementation on Github](https://github.com/PHPCSStandards/PHP_CodeSniffer/compare/4.x...akirk:PHP_CodeSniffer:phpcbf-interactive).
   This is not yet a PR because [they prefer to have a discussion it first](https://github.com/PHPCSStandards/PHP_CodeSniffer/blob/4.x/.github/CONTRIBUTING.md#requestingsubmitting-new-features)
   but I worked on an implementation already so that you can experience how it feels
   to use it and don’t just have to imagine it. Find the instructions to do so [on the bottom of the issue](https://github.com/PHPCSStandards/PHP_CodeSniffer/issues/1285).
 * PS: to make the terminal output look well in this post, I have made this [syntaxhighlighter-ansi](https://github.com/akirk/syntaxhighlighter-ansi)
   plugin for the [SyntaxHighlighter Evolved plugin](https://wordpress.com/plugins/syntaxhighlighter)
   for WordPress that will interpret the ANSI escape sequences from the terminal
   and convert it to colorful output like you can see above.
 * [Code](https://alex.kirk.at/category/code/), [PHP](https://alex.kirk.at/category/code/php/)

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