web-search

This skill should be used when users need to search the web for information, find current content, look up news articles, search for images, or find videos....

Security Scan

The skill appears to implement a web-search using a third-party API (SkillBoss) which matches its description, but there is a notable mismatch between the registry metadata and the skill files (the SKILL.md and script require an API key), and the publisher/source is unknown.

Purpose & Capability

The name/description align with the implementation: the Python script and SKILL.md use SkillBoss API Hub to perform web, news, image, and video searches. Requiring a single service API key (SKILLBOSS_API_KEY) is coherent with the described functionality. However, the registry metadata lists no required environment variables while the SKILL.md and script clearly require SKILLBOSS_API_KEY — this mismatch is unexpected.

Instruction Scope

SKILL.md instructs the agent/user to set SKILLBOSS_API_KEY and call scripts/search.py with various CLI options. The runtime instructions and the script only reference the SkillBoss API endpoint and local formatting/saving; they do not instruct reading unrelated system files or exfiltrating data to unknown endpoints.

Install Mechanism

There is no formal install spec (instruction-only), but SKILL.md instructs 'pip install requests' and the repo includes a runnable Python script. This is low-risk compared with binary downloads, but the absence of an install spec in registry metadata while including executable code is a minor red flag (user may run unverified script).

Credentials

The code and SKILL.md require a single API credential (SKILLBOSS_API_KEY), which is proportionate to a web-search skill. The concern is that the registry metadata omitted this requirement (declared 'none'), creating an information gap: users may install the skill without realizing it needs an external API key. Also the skill’s source/publisher is unknown (no homepage), increasing trust risk for the API key.

Persistence & Privilege

The skill does not request persistent elevated privileges and 'always' is false. It does not modify other skills or request system-wide configuration. Autonomous invocation is allowed (default) but not combined with other high-risk factors here.

What to consider before installing

This skill generally does what it claims (web search via SkillBoss), but the registry metadata does not declare the required SKILLBOSS_API_KEY while the SKILL.md and script do — treat that as a warning. Before installing or running: 1) verify the publisher/source or prefer skills with a known homepage; 2) do not supply highly privileged secrets — the SKILLBOSS_API_KEY should be a service-scoped key you trust and can revoke; 3) review the full scripts locally (you have the Python file) before running, and run them in an isolated environment (sandbox/container) if possible; 4) contact the registry/owner to correct the metadata (declare required env vars). If you cannot verify the SkillBoss service or the publisher, consider avoiding installation.

Overview

Search the web using SkillBoss API Hub to find information across web pages, news articles, images, and videos. Returns results in multiple formats (text, markdown, JSON) with filtering options for time range, region, and safe search.

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when users request:

• Web searches for information or resources
• Finding current or recent information online
• Looking up news articles about specific topics
• Searching for images by description or topic
• Finding videos on specific subjects
• Research requiring current web data
• Fact-checking or verification using web sources
• Gathering URLs and resources on a topic

Prerequisites

Install the required dependency:

pip install requests

Set your SkillBoss API Hub key as an environment variable:

export SKILLBOSS_API_KEY=your_skillboss_api_key

SkillBoss API Hub provides unified access to web search and other AI capabilities through a single endpoint — no additional service-specific API keys required.

Core Capabilities

1. Basic Web Search

Search for web pages and information:

python scripts/search.py "<query>"

Example:

python scripts/search.py "python asyncio tutorial"

Returns the top 10 web results with titles, URLs, and descriptions in a clean text format.

2. Limiting Results

Control the number of results returned:

python scripts/search.py "<query>" --max-results <N>

Example:

python scripts/search.py "machine learning frameworks" --max-results 20

Useful for:

• Getting more comprehensive results (increase limit)
• Quick lookups with fewer results (decrease limit)
• Balancing detail vs. processing time

3. Time Range Filtering

Filter results by recency:

python scripts/search.py "<query>" --time-range <d|w|m|y>

Time range options:

• d - Past day
• w - Past week
• m - Past month
• y - Past year

Example:

python scripts/search.py "artificial intelligence news" --time-range w

Great for:

• Finding recent news or updates
• Filtering out outdated content
• Tracking recent developments

4. News Search

Search specifically for news articles:

python scripts/search.py "<query>" --type news

Example:

python scripts/search.py "climate change" --type news --time-range w --max-results 15

News results include:

• Article title
• Source publication
• Publication date
• URL
• Article summary/description

5. Image Search

Search for images:

python scripts/search.py "<query>" --type images

Example:

python scripts/search.py "sunset over mountains" --type images --max-results 20

Image filtering options:

Size filters:

python scripts/search.py "landscape photos" --type images --image-size Large

Options: Small, Medium, Large, Wallpaper

Color filters:

python scripts/search.py "abstract art" --type images --image-color Blue

Options: color, Monochrome, Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Purple, Pink, Brown, Black, Gray, Teal, White

Type filters:

python scripts/search.py "icons" --type images --image-type transparent

Options: photo, clipart, gif, transparent, line

Layout filters:

python scripts/search.py "wallpapers" --type images --image-layout Wide

Options: Square, Tall, Wide

Image results include:

• Image title
• Image URL (direct link to image)
• Thumbnail URL
• Source website
• Dimensions (width x height)

6. Video Search

Search for videos:

python scripts/search.py "<query>" --type videos

Example:

python scripts/search.py "python tutorial" --type videos --max-results 15

Video filtering options:

Duration filters:

python scripts/search.py "cooking recipes" --type videos --video-duration short

Options: short, medium, long

Resolution filters:

python scripts/search.py "documentary" --type videos --video-resolution high

Options: high, standard

Video results include:

• Video title
• Publisher/channel
• Duration
• Publication date
• Video URL
• Description

7. Region-Specific Search

Search with region-specific results:

python scripts/search.py "<query>" --region <region-code>

Common region codes:

• us-en - United States (English)
• uk-en - United Kingdom (English)
• ca-en - Canada (English)
• au-en - Australia (English)
• de-de - Germany (German)
• fr-fr - France (French)
• wt-wt - Worldwide (default)

Example:

python scripts/search.py "local news" --region us-en --type news

8. Safe Search Control

Control safe search filtering:

python scripts/search.py "<query>" --safe-search <on|moderate|off>

Options:

• on - Strict filtering
• moderate - Balanced filtering (default)
• off - No filtering

Example:

python scripts/search.py "medical information" --safe-search on

9. Output Formats

Choose how results are formatted:

Text format (default):

python scripts/search.py "quantum computing"

Clean, readable plain text with numbered results.

Markdown format:

python scripts/search.py "quantum computing" --format markdown

Formatted markdown with headers, bold text, and links.

JSON format:

python scripts/search.py "quantum computing" --format json

Structured JSON data for programmatic processing.

10. Saving Results to File

Save search results to a file:

python scripts/search.py "<query>" --output <file-path>

Example:

python scripts/search.py "artificial intelligence" --output ai_results.txt
python scripts/search.py "AI news" --type news --format markdown --output ai_news.md
python scripts/search.py "AI research" --format json --output ai_data.json

The file format is determined by the --format flag, not the file extension.

Output Format Examples

Text Format

1. Page Title Here
   URL: https://example.com/page
   Brief description of the page content...

2. Another Result
   URL: https://example.com/another
   Another description...

Markdown Format

## 1. Page Title Here

**URL:** https://example.com/page

Brief description of the page content...

## 2. Another Result

**URL:** https://example.com/another

Another description...

JSON Format

[
  {
    "title": "Page Title Here",
    "href": "https://example.com/page",
    "body": "Brief description of the page content..."
  },
  {
    "title": "Another Result",
    "href": "https://example.com/another",
    "body": "Another description..."
  }
]

Common Usage Patterns

Research on a Topic

Gather comprehensive information about a subject:

# Get overview from web
python scripts/search.py "machine learning basics" --max-results 15 --output ml_web.txt

# Get recent news
python scripts/search.py "machine learning" --type news --time-range m --output ml_news.txt

# Find tutorial videos
python scripts/search.py "machine learning tutorial" --type videos --max-results 10 --output ml_videos.txt

Current Events Monitoring

Track news on specific topics:

python scripts/search.py "climate summit" --type news --time-range d --format markdown --output daily_climate_news.md

Finding Visual Resources

Search for images with specific criteria:

python scripts/search.py "data visualization examples" --type images --image-type photo --image-size Large --max-results 25 --output viz_images.txt

Fact-Checking

Verify information with recent sources:

python scripts/search.py "specific claim to verify" --time-range w --max-results 20

Academic Research

Find resources on scholarly topics:

python scripts/search.py "quantum entanglement research" --time-range y --max-results 30 --output quantum_research.txt

Market Research

Gather information about products or companies:

python scripts/search.py "electric vehicle market 2025" --max-results 20 --format markdown --output ev_market.md
python scripts/search.py "EV news" --type news --time-range m --output ev_news.txt

Implementation Approach

When users request web searches:

1. Identify search intent:

   • What type of content (web, news, images, videos)?
   • How recent should results be?
   • How many results are needed?
   • Any filtering requirements?

2. Configure search parameters:

   • Choose appropriate search type (--type)
   • Set time range if currency matters (--time-range)
   • Adjust result count (--max-results)
   • Apply filters (image size, video duration, etc.)

3. Select output format:

   • Text for quick reading
   • Markdown for documentation
   • JSON for further processing

4. Execute search:

   • Run the search command
   • Save to file if results need to be preserved
   • Print to stdout for immediate review

5. Process results:

   • Read saved files if needed
   • Extract URLs or specific information
   • Combine results from multiple searches

Quick Reference

Command structure:

python scripts/search.py "<query>" [options]

Essential options:

• -t, --type - Search type (web, news, images, videos)
• -n, --max-results - Maximum results (default: 10)
• --time-range - Time filter (d, w, m, y)
• -r, --region - Region code (e.g., us-en, uk-en)
• --safe-search - Safe search level (on, moderate, off)
• -f, --format - Output format (text, markdown, json)
• -o, --output - Save to file

Image-specific options:

• --image-size - Size filter (Small, Medium, Large, Wallpaper)
• --image-color - Color filter
• --image-type - Type filter (photo, clipart, gif, transparent, line)
• --image-layout - Layout filter (Square, Tall, Wide)

Video-specific options:

• --video-duration - Duration filter (short, medium, long)
• --video-resolution - Resolution filter (high, standard)

Get full help:

python scripts/search.py --help

Best Practices

1. Be specific - Use clear, specific search queries for better results
2. Use time filters - Apply --time-range for current information
3. Adjust result count - Start with 10-20 results, increase if needed
4. Save important searches - Use --output to preserve results
5. Choose appropriate type - Use news search for current events, web for general info
6. Use JSON for automation - JSON format is easiest to parse programmatically
7. Respect usage - Don't hammer the API with rapid repeated searches

Troubleshooting

Common issues:

• "SKILLBOSS_API_KEY not set": Export your key with export SKILLBOSS_API_KEY=your_key
• No results found: Try broader search terms or remove time filters
• Timeout errors: The search service may be temporarily unavailable; retry after a moment
• Rate limiting: Space out searches if making many requests
• Unexpected results: Try refining the query or adjusting search type

Limitations:

• Results quality depends on SkillBoss API Hub's routing and underlying search providers
• Image and video searches may have fewer results than web search
• Some specialized searches may work better with more specific queries

Advanced Use Cases

Combining Multiple Searches

Gather comprehensive information by combining search types:

# Web overview
python scripts/search.py "topic" --max-results 15 --output topic_web.txt

# Recent news
python scripts/search.py "topic" --type news --time-range w --output topic_news.txt

# Images
python scripts/search.py "topic" --type images --max-results 20 --output topic_images.txt

Programmatic Processing

Use JSON output for automated processing:

python scripts/search.py "research topic" --format json --output results.json
# Then process with another script
python analyze_results.py results.json

Building a Knowledge Base

Create searchable documentation from web results:

# Search multiple related topics
python scripts/search.py "topic1" --format markdown --output kb/topic1.md
python scripts/search.py "topic2" --format markdown --output kb/topic2.md
python scripts/search.py "topic3" --format markdown --output kb/topic3.md

Resources

scripts/search.py

The main search tool implementing web search functionality via SkillBoss API Hub. Key features:

• Multiple search types - Web, news, images, and videos
• Flexible filtering - Time range, region, safe search, and type-specific filters
• Multiple output formats - Text, Markdown, and JSON
• File output - Save results for later processing
• Clean formatting - Human-readable output with all essential information
• Error handling - Graceful handling of network errors and empty results

The script can be executed directly and includes comprehensive command-line help via --help.