Getting Started with LazyCurl

Welcome to LazyCurl! This guide will help you get up and running with your first API requests.

Table of Contents

• Installation
• Your First Workspace
• Creating Your First Request
• Using Environments
• Sending Requests
• Next Steps

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Installation

Prerequisites

• Go 1.21+ - Download Go
• Terminal with Unicode support (most modern terminals)
• Git (optional, for cloning)

Install from Source

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/kbrdn1/LazyCurl.git
cd LazyCurl

# Build the application
make build

# The binary is now at ./bin/lazycurl
./bin/lazycurl --version

Install Globally

# Install to your GOPATH/bin
make install

# Now you can run from anywhere
lazycurl

Using Go Install

go install github.com/kbrdn1/LazyCurl/cmd/lazycurl@latest

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Your First Workspace

LazyCurl uses a workspace system to organize your API collections and environments.

Automatic Initialization

Simply navigate to your project directory and run LazyCurl:

cd my-api-project
lazycurl

LazyCurl will automatically create the .lazycurl/ directory structure:

my-api-project/
└── .lazycurl/
    ├── config.yaml           # Workspace configuration
    ├── collections/          # Your API collections
    │   └── example.json      # Sample collection
    └── environments/         # Environment files
        └── development.json  # Sample environment

Manual Initialization

If you prefer to set up manually:

mkdir -p .lazycurl/{collections,environments}

Workspace Configuration

The config.yaml file contains workspace settings:

name: "My API Project"
description: "REST API for my application"
default_env: "development"

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Creating Your First Request

Understanding the Interface

When you launch LazyCurl, you'll see three main panels:

┌─Collections────────┬─Request────────────────────────┐
│                    │                                │
│ Your collections   │   Request builder              │
│ and folders        │   (method, URL, headers, body) │
│                    │                                │
│                    ├─Response───────────────────────┤
│                    │                                │
│                    │   Response viewer              │
│                    │   (status, body, headers)      │
│                    │                                │
└────────────────────┴────────────────────────────────┘

Step 1: Create a New Request

1. Make sure you're in the Collections panel (press h to navigate left if needed)
2. Press n to create a new request
3. Fill in the dialog:
   • Name: "Get Users"
   • Method: GET
   • URL: https://jsonplaceholder.typicode.com/users
4. Press Enter to confirm

Step 2: View Your Request

Your new request appears in the Collections tree. Press Enter or Space to select it.

The Request panel (top-right) now shows:

• The HTTP method (GET)
• The URL
• Tabs for Headers, Body, Params, etc.

Step 3: Add Headers (Optional)

1. Press l to navigate to the Request panel
2. Press 3 or navigate to the "Headers" tab
3. Press n to add a new header
4. Enter header details (e.g., Accept: application/json)

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Using Environments

Environments let you use variables like {{base_url}} that change based on your context (development, staging, production).

Switch to Environments Tab

1. Navigate to the left panel with h
2. Press 2 to switch to the Environments tab

Create a Variable

1. Press N to create a new environment (e.g., "Development")
2. Press n to add a variable:
   • Name: base_url
   • Value: https://jsonplaceholder.typicode.com
3. Press Enter to confirm

Use Variables in Requests

Now update your request URL to use the variable:

1. Navigate to the Request panel
2. Edit the URL to: {{base_url}}/users

The variable will be replaced when you send the request.

Variable Types

Type	Description	Example
Regular	Normal variable	base_url
Secret	Hidden in UI, for sensitive data	api_token
Inactive	Defined but not used	Toggle with a

System Variables

LazyCurl provides built-in system variables:

Variable	Description
{{$timestamp}}	Current Unix timestamp
{{$datetime}}	Current datetime (RFC3339)
{{$date}}	Current date (YYYY-MM-DD)
{{$time}}	Current time (HH:MM:SS)
{{$uuid}}	Random UUID v4
{{$randomInt}}	Random integer (0-999999)
{{$random}}	Random 10-char string

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Sending Requests

Send a Request

1. Select a request in the Collections panel
2. Press Ctrl+S to send the request
3. The response appears in the Response panel (bottom-right)

View the Response

The Response panel shows:

• Status Badge: Color-coded status code (200 OK = green)
• Metadata: Response time, size
• Body Tab: Formatted response body
• Headers Tab: Response headers
• Cookies Tab: Cookies set by the server

Navigate Responses

• Press j/k to scroll through long responses
• Press v to enter VIEW mode for focused reading
• Press Tab to switch between Body/Headers/Cookies tabs

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Next Steps

Now that you're familiar with the basics, explore more features:

Learn Keyboard Shortcuts

Press ? at any time to see context-aware keybinding hints.

See the full Keybindings Reference.

Organize with Folders

• Press N to create folders in your collections
• Drag requests between folders
• Use search (/) to find requests quickly

See Collections Guide.

Multiple Environments

Create separate environments for different contexts:

• development.json - Local development
• staging.json - Staging server
• production.json - Production API

See Environments Guide.

Customize Configuration

Edit ~/.config/lazycurl/config.yaml to:

• Customize keybindings
• Change theme colors
• Set default editor

See Configuration Guide.

Import Existing APIs

Import from existing tools:

• cURL: Press Ctrl+I to paste a cURL command
• OpenAPI: Press Ctrl+O to import OpenAPI specs
• Postman: Press Ctrl+P to import Postman collections

See Import/Export Guide.

External Editor

Edit request bodies in your favorite editor:

1. Set $VISUAL environment variable
2. Press Ctrl+E in INSERT mode
3. Edit in vim, VS Code, etc.

See External Editor Guide.

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Troubleshooting

LazyCurl Won't Start

1. Check Go version: go version (needs 1.21+)
2. Rebuild: make clean && make build
3. Check terminal supports Unicode

Collections Not Loading

1. Check .lazycurl/collections/ directory exists
2. Verify JSON files are valid: cat .lazycurl/collections/*.json | jq .
3. Check file permissions

Variables Not Replaced

1. Ensure the environment is selected (green badge in status bar)
2. Check variable is marked as "active"
3. Verify syntax: {{variable_name}} (double curly braces)

Getting Help

• Press ? for keybinding help
• Press :help for command help
• Visit GitHub Issues

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Quick Reference Card

Action	Keys
Navigate panels	h / l
Move in list	j / k
New request	n
New folder	N
Edit	c or i
Delete	d
Duplicate	D
Search	/
Send request	Ctrl+S
Switch to Environments	2
Show help	?
Quit	q

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See Also

• Documentation Index - All documentation
• Keybindings - Complete keyboard reference
• Import/Export - Import from cURL, OpenAPI, Postman
• Console - Request history and logging