Download the CleenUI skill files locally and reference them in .aider.conf.yml's read directive.
Aider is a terminal-based AI pair programmer. It loads read-only context files at startup via .aider.conf.yml's read directive. The read directive only accepts local file paths, so the install flow is: fetch the CleenUI skill files into your repo (or home dir) once, then point aider at the local copies.
Aider's read: directive expects local paths, so first pull the skill markdown into your repo (or somewhere stable on disk). The npm package @cleenui/mcp-skills ships these as exportable markdown — npx will copy them.
Aider reads YAML config from .aider.conf.yml in your repo root (project-scoped) or your home dir (global). For a single project, project-scoped is best — it lives with the codebase.
Paste this YAML. The read: directive loads each file as read-only context, so aider can follow the instructions without aider also editing the skill files themselves.
Launch aider in your project. The startup banner lists every file in read: — you should see the three CleenUI skill files there.
Aider has the skill instructions in context now. Just describe what you want — it'll follow the setup.md procedure step by step, asking before each file edit.
Type /tokens in aider. The token count will include the three CleenUI skill files, showing they were loaded into context.
Paths in read: are relative to wherever you launched aider, not to .aider.conf.yml. Use absolute paths if you launch from a subdirectory.
Add a git submodule or a small script that re-runs the export command before each aider session. The skill files are version-pinned by your @cleenui/mcp-skills install.
Two paths to your first component. Pick the one that fits how your team builds.
One prompt to your AI tool. The Setup skill handles dependencies, design tokens, build config, and component registration — all without leaving your editor.
The classic flow. Install the package, import the styles, drop in your first component. No agents required — same end result.