The Ralph Format
A ralph is a directory with a RALPH.md file in it. RALPH.md defines an autonomous agent loop: the agent to run, the commands to run between iterations, and the prompt to pipe in.
That's the whole format.
Standards¶
RALPH.md – a markdown format for autonomous agent loops
I keep setting up the same thing: an agent in a while loop, a few shell commands that run between iterations to check what changed, their output piped back into the prompt. Every time I set one up I rewrite the same scaffolding. So I made a format for it — a skill-like format with a single markdown file that defines what happens in the outer loop — run commands, assemble a prompt, pipe it to an agent — so the agent can focus on the inner loop.