# Install Midcenturion 0.1.0

Midcenturion is a local MCP server and research skill. The calling agent supplies
search and reasoning; Midcenturion stores the investigation and enforces its
validation gates. It does not keep researching after the calling agent stops.

## Requirements

- Python 3.11 or newer, with `venv` and `pip` available.
- macOS or Linux. This release has been exercised on macOS; the installer uses
  POSIX paths and is not a Windows installer.
- Internet access during installation to obtain Python dependencies.
- For the Codex commands below, the Codex CLI must already be installed.

## Install the downloaded source bundle

Run these commands in the folder containing `midcenturion-0.1.0.tar.gz`:

```sh
tar -xzf midcenturion-0.1.0.tar.gz
cd midcenturion-0.1.0
python3 scripts/install_local.py
```

If `python3` is older than 3.11, use your newer Python executable for the last
command. The installer creates an isolated environment at
`~/.local/share/midcenturion/runtime`, links its executable at
`~/.local/bin/midcenturion`, and copies the skill to
`${CODEX_HOME:-~/.codex}/skills/midcenturion`. It does not register the MCP server
automatically. Existing unrelated files are protected from replacement.

## Connect Codex

```sh
codex mcp add midcenturion -- "$HOME/.local/bin/midcenturion" serve
```

Start a fresh Codex chat so the new MCP server and skill can be discovered. Ask:

> $midcenturion Investigate the best design for my system. Compare competing
> explanations, test the important assumptions, and preserve the evidence.

## Connect another MCP client

Add a local stdio server using the absolute executable path printed by the
installer and the argument `serve`. A typical client configuration looks like:

```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "midcenturion": {
      "command": "/absolute/path/to/your/home/.local/bin/midcenturion",
      "args": ["serve"]
    }
  }
}
```

Replace the example command path; do not leave the placeholder or rely on `~`
expansion inside JSON. The exact configuration location and format depend on
your MCP client. The bundled `skills/midcenturion/SKILL.md` describes the research
workflow; other clients may require manually adding those instructions.

## Check the installation

```sh
"$HOME/.local/bin/midcenturion" doctor
```

No Midcenturion API key or hosted service is required. Your agent's search/model
tools may have their own account or usage requirements. State is stored locally
in `~/.local/share/midcenturion/state` by default. Local validation receipts
record what was checked; they do not guarantee that a conclusion is true.

## Verify the download

`SHA256SUMS` includes this guide and the source archive. On macOS, run
`shasum -a 256 -c SHA256SUMS`; on Linux, run `sha256sum -c SHA256SUMS` from the
folder containing those files. Checksums detect changed downloads; they are not
a publisher signature.