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MiniClaw Quick Start

Immediate Next Steps

1. Install Dependencies

npm install

⚠️ Windows Note: If you get build errors for better-sqlite3, you need Windows build tools:

npm install --global windows-build-tools

Run as administrator, then retry npm install.

2. Configure Environment

copy .env.example .env
notepad .env

Fill in at minimum:

Optional:

  • VOYAGE_API_KEY — For vector embeddings (free at https://www.voyageai.com)
  • Google Calendar credentials — See README for full setup

3. Discord Setup (5 minutes)

  1. Go to https://discord.com/developers/applications
  2. Click "New Application" → Name: "MiniClaw"
  3. Go to Bot tab → Click "Reset Token" → Copy token → Paste into .env as DISCORD_TOKEN
  4. Enable Message Content Intent under Privileged Gateway Intents
  5. Go to OAuth2 → URL Generator:
    • Scopes: bot
    • Permissions: Send Messages, Read Message History, Embed Links
  6. Copy URL → Open in browser → Invite to your private server
  7. In Discord: Settings → Advanced → Enable Developer Mode
  8. Right-click your username → Copy User ID → Paste into .env as DISCORD_OWNER_ID

4. Google Calendar Setup (Optional, 10 minutes)

See full instructions in README.md. Summary:

  1. Create Google Cloud project
  2. Enable Calendar API
  3. Create OAuth2 credentials
  4. Add credentials to .env
  5. Run: npm run auth (opens browser, authorize, done)

5. Start MiniClaw

npm start

You should see:

=== MiniClaw Starting ===
[Calendar] Initialized with saved tokens
[MemoryIndex] SQLite hybrid search initialized
[Discord] Logged in as MiniClaw#1234
=== MiniClaw Ready ===

6. First Message

In your Discord server, try:

hello! who are you?

The bot should respond. Try these next:

remember that I'm building a game in Godot with procedural terrain

what do you remember about me?

let's build a shopping list skill together

Troubleshooting

Bot doesn't respond

  • Check DISCORD_OWNER_ID matches your Discord user ID exactly
  • Make sure Message Content Intent is enabled in Discord Developer Portal
  • Look at console for error messages

"Calendar not initialized"

  • Either skip calendar for now (it's optional)
  • Or run npm run auth to complete Google OAuth2 flow

"better-sqlite3" build errors

  • Install Windows build tools: npm install --global windows-build-tools (as admin)
  • Requires Python 3 and Visual Studio Build Tools

"Vector search failed"

  • This is expected if you don't have VOYAGE_API_KEY
  • System falls back to keyword-only search (works fine!)
  • Add Voyage API key later if you want semantic search

What to Try

Once running, explore these features:

Memory System:

remember that my favorite color is blue
search my memory for "blue"

Calendar (if configured):

what's on my calendar this week?
add a meeting tomorrow at 3pm for 1 hour called "Project Review"

Skill Building:

let's build a note-taking skill

Model Switching:

!model claude-haiku-4-5-20251001
what model are you using?
!model claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929

Personality:

update your identity file - pick a name and emoji you like

Running 24/7

To keep MiniClaw running permanently on your Windows PC:

  1. Install PM2: npm install -g pm2
  2. Start with PM2: pm2 start src/index.js --name miniclaw
  3. Save: pm2 save
  4. Setup startup: pm2 startup (follow instructions)

Or use node-windows to create a Windows service.

Next Steps

  • Read the full README.md for detailed documentation
  • Explore SOUL.md and IDENTITY.md to shape your AI's personality
  • Build your first custom skill together with the AI
  • Set up Google Calendar if you skipped it initially

Have fun! Your AI assistant is ready to grow with you.