← Link Ration
API
Tokens

Drive Link Ration from your own code

The one metered lane, ration, is available over HTTP. It takes a page's planned posts for a month and how many outbound links the month allows, and returns a verdict - over, fits or needs-posts - with one decision per post: spend (keeps its link and uses a coupon), native (a rewrite that works without the link, and where the link lives instead), as-is (no link to begin with) or cut (too thin to publish). A natural use is a content-calendar script that runs at the start of each month and flags which scheduled posts must lose their links.

The division of labour first: the page reads the posts and counts the links; the model decides and rewrites; the page re-checks the reply. The post reader, the link ledger and the clipping come from rationkit.js, which runs in node as well as in the browser. RationKit.buildInput pulls every link out of each post, keeps the date typed in front, and counts the words left. RationKit.check holds each reply to the posts: one decision per post, no more coupons than the allowance and none left idle while link posts go without, spent posts that really carry a link, no web address or comment-link workaround inside a rewrite, pointers that land on a spent post with the same destination, and no number or weekday the posts never state.

Get a token on the token page (step 2 below also shows how to mint a guest token in code).

Base URL and the envelope

Every endpoint lives under https://api.skillsafe.ai/v1/app-api, and every response uses one envelope:

{ "ok": true,  "data":  { ... } }
{ "ok": false, "error": { "code": "...", "message": "...", "status": 402, "details": { ... } } }

The token is minted for this app (the guest call takes {"slug":"link-ration"}), so no slug header is needed afterwards. Send it as Authorization: Bearer …. The run body is the input object, sent bare.

StatusCodeMeaning
400validation_errorThe body is not a JSON object, or a required field such as task, allowance or posts is missing.
401unauthorizedNo token, or a stale one. Mint a guest token or sign in again.
402insufficient_creditsThe balance is under min_credits. Price with /estimate first.
403forbiddenA guest token tried to run: the ration lane is metered and needs a personal token.
404not_foundUnknown job id.
429rate_limitedBack off and retry.
5xxserver_errorTransient. Retry with the same Idempotency-Key so a retry never double-bills.

The task field and the verdicts

Every run sends task: ration, the only lane; a missing or unknown task is treated as ration. A post is real when it has four or more words besides its links and date; a link post is a real post that carries a link. The verdict is decided by three ordered, non-overlapping rules - the first that applies wins:

OrderVerdictWhen
1needs-postsFewer than two real posts. posts is empty; asks holds two or three questions.
2fitsLink posts are no more than allowance: every link post is spend.
3overMore link posts than coupons: exactly allowance posts are spend; every other link post is native.

The declared input schema carries scalars only, so the array-valued posts field travels JSON-encoded as a string (RationKit.toWire does this). Every value is a string.

Input fields

FieldTypeNotes
taskstringration. Required.
allowancestringOutbound links the month allows, "1" to "10". Required.
postsstring (JSON)[{id, date, text, links, words}] - ids P1.., up to 20 posts of up to 500 characters; date as typed in front of the post or empty; text with links removed; links the URLs found; words the word count of text. Required.
page, goal, monthstringWhat the page is, what readers should do, and the month, as typed. Optional.
clip_note, retry_notestringWhat the page cut, when it cut something; and only on a reformat retry, what was wrong.

The reply

The job's output.output is a string holding one JSON object: task, verdict, title, summary, posts ([{id, action, why, rewrite, where_instead, points_to}] - one per input post, in order; action is spend, native, as-is or cut; only native carries a rewrite and a where_instead of spent-post, about, message or none; points_to names the spent post only with spent-post) and asks. Parse with RationKit.parseReply, then normalize(reply), then check(reply, form), which returns the page's notes.

Worked examples

Replies produced against the app's prompt for the three sample months (made-up pages with .example addresses; long fields and lists shortened; the full replies ship in example-result.js). Together they cover every verdict and every action.

ration - a bakery's November, seven posts, two links: over

Input:

{
 "task": "ration",
 "page": "Quillby Lane Bakery, a neighbourhood bakery",
 "goal": "pie preorders and a weekend hire",
 "month": "November",
 "allowance": "2",
 "posts": "[{\"id\":\"P1\",\"date\":\"Nov 2\",\"text\":\"Holiday pie preorders are open until Nov 20 - pumpkin, pecan and apple, pick up Nov 25 or 26\",\"links\":[\"https://quillbylanebakery.example/preorder\"],\"words\":18},{\"id\":\"P2\",\"date\":\"Nov 5\",\"text\":\"Our sourdough starter recipe, step by step, for anyone baking at home\",\"links\":[\"https://quillbylanebakery.example/blog/starter\"],\"words\":12},{\"id\":\"P3\",\"date\":\"Nov 8\",\"text\":\"We're hiring a weekend counter person - early mornings, friendly, no experience needed\",\"links\":[\"https://quillbyl ... (1103 characters)"
}

Reply:

{
 "task": "ration",
 "verdict": "over",
 "title": "November pies and hiring plan",
 "summary": "November has five link posts but only two coupons this month. The pie preorder and the weekend hiring posts keep their links, since both need a click to happen. The rest keep their news without a link, pointing readers to an earlier post, our about section, or a message instead.",
 "posts": [
  {
   "id": "P1",
   "action": "spend",
   "why": "The link lets a reader place a pie preorder, which can only happen through that click.",
   "rewrite": "",
   "where_instead": "",
   "points_to": ""
  },
  {
   "id": "P2",
   "action": "native",
   "why": "Readers get the idea of the recipe here, and the rest is easy to find without a click.",
   "rewrite": "We're sharing our sourdough starter recipe, step by step, for anyone baking at home. The full recipe is in our about section.",
   "where_instead": "about",
   "points_to": ""
  },
  {
   "id": "P3",
   "action": "spend",
   "why": "The link lets someone apply for the weekend counter job, which can only happen there.",
   "rewrite": "",
   "where_instead": "",
   "points_to": ""
  },
  "... (7 in all)"
 ],
 "asks": []
}

ration - a choir's December, two link posts, three links: fits

Input:

{
 "task": "ration",
 "page": "Brindlemoor Community Choir",
 "goal": "sell concert tickets",
 "month": "December",
 "allowance": "3",
 "posts": "[{\"id\":\"P1\",\"date\":\"Dec 1\",\"text\":\"Tickets for our winter concert on Dec 14 at Brindlemoor Parish Hall are on sale now\",\"links\":[\"https://brindlemoorchoir.example/tickets\"],\"words\":16},{\"id\":\"P2\",\"date\":\"Dec 4\",\"text\":\"Rehearsal photo - the altos finally nailed the descant\",\"links\":[],\"words\":8},{\"id\":\"P3\",\"date\":\"Dec 9\",\"text\":\"We're collecting warm coats for the shelter at every rehearsal this month\",\"links\":[],\"words\":12},{\"id\":\"P4\",\"date\":\"Dec 11\",\"text\":\"Watch last year's concert recording before you come\",\"li ... (660 characters)"
}

Reply:

{
 "task": "ration",
 "verdict": "fits",
 "title": "December concert ticket plan",
 "summary": "This month has two link posts and three coupons, so both keep their links as planned. The rehearsal photo and the coat drive update work fine without a link. The thank-you post is only a couple of words, so it's too thin to publish as is.",
 "posts": [
  {
   "id": "P1",
   "action": "spend",
   "why": "Buying a ticket only happens through this link, so it keeps its spot this month.",
   "rewrite": "",
   "where_instead": "",
   "points_to": ""
  },
  {
   "id": "P2",
   "action": "as-is",
   "why": "This works fine as a stand-alone update with nothing to click through to.",
   "rewrite": "",
   "where_instead": "",
   "points_to": ""
  },
  {
   "id": "P3",
   "action": "as-is",
   "why": "This is a stand-alone call for coats and doesn't need a link.",
   "rewrite": "",
   "where_instead": "",
   "points_to": ""
  },
  "... (5 in all)"
 ],
 "asks": []
}

ration - "sale post", "new arrivals!!" and a bare link: needs-posts

Input:

{
 "task": "ration",
 "page": "Corner bookshop",
 "goal": "",
 "month": "",
 "allowance": "2",
 "posts": "[{\"id\":\"P1\",\"date\":\"\",\"text\":\"sale post\",\"links\":[\"https://cornerbooks.example/sale\"],\"words\":2},{\"id\":\"P2\",\"date\":\"\",\"text\":\"new arrivals!!\",\"links\":[],\"words\":2},{\"id\":\"P3\",\"date\":\"\",\"text\":\"\",\"links\":[\"https://cornerbooks.example\"],\"words\":0}]"
}

Reply:

{
 "task": "ration",
 "verdict": "needs-posts",
 "title": "Not enough posts to plan",
 "summary": "Three posts came in, but none of them say enough yet to plan the month around. A few more words in each one would make it clear what deserves a link and what doesn't.",
 "posts": [],
 "asks": [
  "What's happening this month?",
  "What do you want readers to do?",
  "What would each post say if nobody could click the link?"
 ]
}

Build the input yourself

Load the script in node (global.window = global; require("./rationkit.js")), then:

const K = RationKit;
const form = K.form({ page: "Quillby Lane Bakery", month: "November", allowance: "2",
  posts: "Nov 2: Pie preorders open until Nov 20 https://shop.example/preorder\nNov 5: Our starter recipe https://shop.example/blog\nNov 8: We're hiring a weekend counter person https://shop.example/jobs" });
console.log(K.flags(form), K.lean(form), K.guess(form));     // the flags, the page's lean, the page's own pick
const wire = K.toWire(K.buildInput("ration", form).input);   // POST this to /estimate and /run
// then: const plan = K.normalize(K.parseReply(job.output.output));
// const { notes } = K.check(plan, form);                      // the page's re-check of the reply
// K.schedule(plan, form)                                      // the posting list, links only where a coupon was spent

Step 1 — a tiny client helper

One function that sends JSON and unwraps the envelope. Paste a personal token from /tokens.html, or leave it empty and mint a guest token in step 2.

BASE="https://api.skillsafe.ai/v1/app-api"
TOKEN="paste-your-token-here"   # from https://link-ration.skillsafe.ai/tokens.html
api() { # api METHOD PATH [JSON-BODY]
  curl -s -X "$1" "$BASE$2" -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
    ${TOKEN:+-H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"} ${3:+--data "$3"}
}

Step 2 — a token

A guest token is enough for /me and /estimate. A run is metered, so it needs a personal token: sign in on /tokens.html and copy it from there.

# a guest token (enough for /me and /estimate); a run needs your personal token from /tokens.html
TOKEN=$(curl -s -X POST "$BASE/guest" -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{"slug":"link-ration"}' | jq -r '.data.token')

Step 3 — GET /me

Who the token is (subject_type: user or guest) and the credit balance.

api GET /me | jq '.data | {subject_type, credits}' 

Step 4 — POST /estimate

Free. The body is the run input itself, the bare object (never wrapped in {"input": ...}). hold_credits is a reservation, not the price; min_credits is what the balance must cover; model_alias reads gpt-terra.

# input.json: the run input object - {"task": "ration", "page": "Quillby Lane Bakery, a neighbourhood bakery", "month": "November", "allowance": "2", "posts": "[{\"id\":\"P1\",\"date\":\"Nov 2\",\"text\":\"Holiday pie preorders are open until Nov 20 - pumpkin, pecan and apple, pick up Nov 25 or 26\",\"links\":[\"https://quillbylanebakery.example/preorder\"],\"words\":18},{\"id\":\"P2\",\"date\":\"Nov 5\",\"text\":\"Our sourdough starter recipe, step by step, for anyone baking at home\",\"links\":[\"https://quillbylanebakery.example/blog/starter\"],\"words\":12}, ...]"}
api POST /estimate "$(cat input.json)" | jq '.data | {hold_credits, min_credits, model, model_alias, markup_bps, warnings}' 

Step 5 — POST /run, then poll the job

Send an Idempotency-Key built from the lane and the input: a retry with the same key never bills twice. The page uses link-ration:<task>:<inputHash>:a<attempt> (the one lane is ration), and its one reformat retry (with retry_note added) is attempt 2, a new key and a second run. The job's output.output is the reply text; truncated: true means the balance cut it short.

KEY="link-ration:ration:$(shasum -a 256 input.json | cut -c1-16):a1"
JOB=$(curl -s -X POST "$BASE/run" -H "Content-Type: application/json" -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Idempotency-Key: $KEY" --data @input.json | jq -r '.data.job_id')
while :; do
  J=$(api GET "/jobs/$JOB"); S=$(echo "$J" | jq -r '.data.status')
  case "$S" in succeeded|failed|cancelled) break;; esac; sleep 2
done
echo "$J" | jq -r '.data.output.output' > reply.json   # one JSON object, the reply contract
echo "$J" | jq '.data | {charged_credits, truncated}' 

Step 6 — POST /run-stream

The same run as Server-Sent Events, with the same input.json. Browsers receive progress ticks rather than text deltas; the final done event carries the reply.

# Server-Sent Events: tick/delta events while the job runs, then a final event with the job
curl -N -s -X POST "$BASE/run-stream" -H "Content-Type: application/json" -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Idempotency-Key: link-ration:ration:$(shasum -a 256 input.json | cut -c1-16):a1" --data @input.json