January 10, 2026
Terminal drama, served hot
Show HN: mcpc – Universal command-line client for Model Context Protocol (MCP)
mcpc brings AI tools to the command line—hackers thrilled, others puzzled
TLDR: mcpc is a new tool that brings MCP—letting AI and apps talk to tools—straight to the command line. Early reactions split between shell fans loving sessions and JSON mode, and newcomers asking what it actually does, showing the terminal still sparks big feelings and practical debates.
Hold your terminals—mcpc just dropped as a “Swiss Army knife” for the Model Context Protocol (MCP), a standard that helps AI and apps talk to real-world tools. The vibe in the thread is instant split-screen: early fans like stinny gush “Pretty sweet tool,” while curious onlookers ask, “So this turns mcps into cli based clients?” Translation: it’s a command-line app that lets you connect to MCP servers, keep sessions alive, and use AI-friendly tools straight from your shell.
Then came the classic internet showdown: shell diehards vs comfort-clickers. Terminal lovers swooned over persistent sessions, JSON mode for piping into tools like jq, and secure logins with OAuth 2.1 using your OS keychain. Skeptics side-eyed the Linux requirement to install libsecret and asked if this is yet another layer of complexity. Meanwhile, the devs flex that “UNIX shell is the most universal coding language,” which sparked memes about AI typing commands like a caffeinated sysadmin.
The hottest debate? The AI sandbox proxy: fans say it’s a safer way to let AI-generated code access authenticated sessions; the cautious crowd says “no bot near my terminal.” The project stays lightweight (no built-in AI), works on Mac/Win/Linux, and speaks standard HTTP or stdio. For folks who love scripts and control, this is a big deal—everyone else is watching, popcorn in hand. Read more about MCP here.
Key Points
- •mcpc is a universal CLI that maps Model Context Protocol (MCP) operations to intuitive commands for shell use, scripting, and AI coding agents.
- •It supports any MCP server via Streamable HTTP or stdio and maintains persistent sessions across multiple server connections.
- •A JSON "code mode" enables integration with tools like jq, and an MCP proxy server provides secure sandboxed access for AI-generated code.
- •mcpc includes full OAuth 2.1 support, stores credentials via the OS keychain, is lightweight, cross-platform, and does not use LLMs itself.
- •Installation is via npm; Linux requires Libsecret. Usage covers config-based local servers, authentication, management commands, and MCP commands for tools, prompts, and resources.