Setup

What you need

Claude Code, on your own Claude plan.
Python 3.11 or later. Check with python --version (python3 --version on macOS or Linux).
The markdown package: pip install markdown. On Windows, also pip install tzdata, so time zones work.
A Chromium browser for PDFs: Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, or Chromium. Perkins looks in the usual places on Windows, macOS, and Linux. If yours is somewhere else, set PERKINS_BROWSER to its path.

Install the plugin

Inside Claude Code:

/plugin marketplace add ReboundMan/Perkins
/plugin install perkins@perkins

While Perkins is in private preview, installing works for people who've been given access to the repository, using their own git credentials (gh auth login and then gh auth setup-git, or an SSH key).

Updates

Perkins pins a version, so updates arrive as deliberate releases. Third-party plugins don't update on their own by default. To update, open /plugin, choose Installed, and update Perkins, or run claude plugin update perkins@perkins. Then run /reload-plugins. Updates never touch your data folder.

Check the computer

python run.py doctor checks for Python 3.11 or later, the markdown package, a browser for PDFs, and (on Windows) time zone data, and says how to fix anything missing. Setup runs it first.

Run setup

Say "set up Perkins" (or run /perkins:setup). It asks:

Where to keep your data. Default ~/job-search. Pick a private folder. Never put it inside a public repository.
"Are you also tracking work search for an unemployment claim?" No means Search. Yes means Search with tracking for Unemployment Claims, and it then asks for your state and the first day of your claim. See modes.

Setup writes a one-line pointer file, ~/.perkins, so every skill finds your folder. To use a different folder for one session, set PERKINS_HOME. Running init yourself repoints ~/.perkins at whatever --data folder you give it; add --no-pointer when you're only trying something out.

Let Claude Code read the folder

A plugin can't grant itself permissions, so setup shows you this snippet for your Claude Code user settings (~/.claude/settings.json) and offers to add it:

{
  "permissions": {
    "additionalDirectories": ["/path/to/your/job-search"]
  }
}

Without it, Claude Code asks before reading or writing files there.

Your data folder

File	What it is
`perkins.toml`	Your settings: mode, state, claim dates, weekly target, options
`master.md`	Your master resume: the only source of facts
`tailoring-model.md`	The role types you target and how to angle the resume for each
`style.md`	Your resume rules
`fact-sheet.md`	Copy-paste answers for applicant forms
`tracker.md`	Every application, conversation, lead, pass, and employer you watch
`dashboard.html`	The whole search on one page, rebuilt after every change
`claim-log.html`	With claims tracking: the work-search log week by week, for a meeting with the state
`applications/`	One folder per tailored resume, with its PDF
`log/`, `log/evidence/`, `nudges.md`	With claims tracking: the weekly log, screenshots, and reminders

Try it without installing

From a clone of the repository: claude --plugin-dir . loads it as the plugin for one session. Under the skills, everything is python run.py <command>; run python run.py -h for the list.