Fetch raw file content from GitHub URLs. Trigger when user shares a GitHub file link (https://github.com/user/repo/blob/main/file.go) and wants to view the source code. Avoids HTML/JS clutter from WebFetch.
View on GitHubrobbyt/claude-skills
gh-cli
January 15, 2026
Select agents to install to:
npx add-skill https://github.com/robbyt/claude-skills/blob/main/plugins/gh-cli/skills/view-file/SKILL.md -a claude-code --skill view-fileInstallation paths:
.claude/skills/view-file/# View GitHub Files
Fetch raw file content from GitHub URLs without HTML/JS clutter.
## Prerequisites
GitHub CLI must be installed and authenticated:
```bash
gh auth status
```
## When to Use
When a user shares a GitHub file URL like:
- `https://github.com/user/repo/blob/main/src/file.go`
- `https://github.com/user/repo/tree/v1.0/docs/README.md`
Use this skill instead of WebFetch to get clean source code.
## Helper Script
```bash
python3 scripts/view_github_file.py https://github.com/user/repo/blob/main/path/to/file.go
```
The script:
- Parses the GitHub URL to extract owner, repo, ref, and path
- Uses `gh api` to fetch file content
- Decodes base64-encoded response
- Returns clean source code
## Supported URL Formats
```
https://github.com/{owner}/{repo}/blob/{ref}/{path}
https://github.com/{owner}/{repo}/tree/{ref}/{path}
```
Where `{ref}` can be a branch name, tag, or commit SHA.
## Fallback (if script fails)
Parse the URL manually and use `gh api`:
```bash
# From URL: https://github.com/golang/go/blob/master/README.md
# Extract: owner=golang, repo=go, ref=master, path=README.md
gh api repos/golang/go/contents/README.md?ref=master --jq '.content' | base64 --decode
```
Or use raw.githubusercontent.com:
```bash
curl https://raw.githubusercontent.com/golang/go/master/README.md
```