somafm_skill

Overview

This skill plays SomaFM internet radio as unobtrusive background music for coding sessions. It offers quick commands to play channels, list available streams, adjust volume, and check playback status. Designed to run with common CLI tools and an audio player for lightweight control.

How this skill works

The skill controls a local audio player to stream SomaFM channels, using simple commands to start, stop, and query playback. It relies on mpv plus common utilities (curl, jq) to fetch channel info and manage an IPC socket for realtime volume changes. Only one stream runs at a time; starting a new channel stops the current stream automatically.

When to use it

• User asks to play music, radio, or SomaFM
• User requests background music, ambient or lo-fi radio while working
• User asks to stop music or check what’s playing
• User wants to browse available SomaFM channels
• User asks to change volume or mute the stream

Best practices

• Ensure mpv, curl, and jq are installed before using the skill
• Use the list command to find channels and listener counts before playing
• Start playback with a channel name or use the default ambient channel for low-distraction audio
• Adjust volume with the dedicated command to avoid restarting the stream
• Run status checks to confirm the player is active before issuing volume or stop commands

Example use cases

• Play the default ambient channel during a coding session: play (defaults to groovesalad at volume 50)
• Start a specific channel for focused work: play defcon --volume=30
• List available SomaFM channels and their popularity: list
• Check what’s currently streaming and current volume: status
• Silence or stop audio instantly: stop or set volume 0