advanced_usage.md

Advanced Usage

Step-by-step instructions for running as a Github action

Fork the repository

Click the fork button at the top of this repository page, as seen on the below image. This will create your own version of the repository, including your own set of github actions

Modify the configuration file

Modify config.yaml by cloning the respository and merging your changes

Create and Fetch your API Keys

• Create or fetch your API key for OpenAI. Note: you will need an OpenAI account.

• Create or fetch your API key for SendGrid. You will need a SendGrid account. The free tier will generally suffice. Make sure to verify your sender identity.

  • Sign Up for SendGrid. Fill in the necessary information, including email, password, and a company name. If you don't have a company, you can use a made-up name.
  • You'll need to verify your email address to activate your account.
  • On your main dashboard, access the Integration Guide under Email API
  • Next, on the "Integrate using our Web API or SMTP Relay"-page, choose the "Web API" option.
  • Choose the language you're planning to use, in this case, select "Python".
  • You'll be prompted to provide a name for your API key. Enter a name and click "Create Key".
  • Copy the API Key that appears for the next step below. You won't be able to view the full key again.

Set the secrets for the github action

Go to the Settings tab on the top of this page, and then the "Actions" menu under "Secrets and variables":

Create a new repository secret for each of the following using the button in the below image:

• OPENAI_API_KEY
• SENDGRID_API_KEY
• FROM_EMAIL
• TO_EMAIL

Manually trigger the action, or wait until the scheduled trigger

Go to the actions tab, and then click on "Daily Workflow" and "Run Workflow"

Additional Configuration

• If you want a different schedule than Sunday through Thursday at 1:25PM UTC, then modify the file .github/workflows/daily_pipeline.yaml

Alternative Usage

Running src/action.py will generate an HTML file that can then be emailed. The following alternative usage methods all use that pattern

Running as a github action with SMTP credentials.

An alternative way to get started using this repository is to:

1. Fork the repository
2. Modify config.yaml and merge the changes into your main branch. If you want a different schedule than Sunday through Thursday at 1:25PM UTC, then also modify the file .github/workflows/daily_pipeline.yaml
3. Create or fetch your API key for OpenAI.
4. Find your email provider's SMTP settings and set the secret MAIL_CONNECTION to that. It should be in the form smtp://user:password@server:port or smtp+starttls://user:password@server:port. Alternatively, if you are using Gmail, you can set MAIL_USERNAME and MAIL_PASSWORD instead, using an application password.
5. Set the following secrets (under settings, Secrets and variables, repository secrets):
   • OPENAI_API_KEY
   • MAIL_CONNECTION (see above)
   • MAIL_PASSWORD (only if you don't have MAIL_CONNECTION set)
   • MAIL_USERNAME (only if you don't have MAIL_CONNECTION set)
   • FROM_EMAIL
   • TO_EMAIL
6. Manually trigger the action or wait until the scheduled action takes place.

Running as a github action without emails

If you do not wish to create a SendGrid account or use your email authentication, the action will also emit an artifact containing the HTML output. Simply do not create the SendGrid or SMTP secrets.

You can access this digest as part of the github action artifact.

Running from the command line

If you do not wish to fork this repository, and would prefer to clone and run it locally instead:

1. Install the requirements in src/requirements.txt
2. Modify the configuration file config.yaml
3. Create or fetch your API key for OpenAI.
4. Create or fetch your API key for SendGrid (optional, if you want the script to email you)
5. Set the following secrets as environment variables:
   • OPENAI_API_KEY
   • SENDGRID_API_KEY (only if using SendGrid)
   • FROM_EMAIL (only if using SendGrid. Note that this value must match the email you used to create the SendGrid Api Key.)
   • TO_EMAIL (only if using SendGrid)
6. Run python action.py.
7. If you are not using SendGrid, the html of the digest will be written to digest.html. You can then use your favorite webbrowser to view it.

You may want to use something like crontab to schedule the digest.