Fix separators when mixing content and path-only output

README.md

@@ -12,60 +12,66 @@ It's a powerful utility for anyone who needs to quickly package a project's sour
 
 ## Key Features
 
-*   **Intelligent Filtering**: Use powerful regular expressions (REGEX) to include or exclude specific files and directories.
-*   **Git Integration**: Automatically respects your `.gitignore` files to exclude irrelevant content, ensuring a clean output (`--git`).
-*   **Precise Content Control**: Decide exactly which files should have their content displayed (`--include-content`) and which should only be listed by path.
-*   **Header Stripping**: Automatically remove boilerplate like license headers or comment blocks from file content using regex, on a global (`--strip`) or per-file-type basis (`--strip-scope`).
-*   **Content Compaction**: Optionally removes comments and redundant whitespace from file content to create a denser, token‑efficient output for LLMs (`--compact`). Language‑aware behavior:
-    *   C/C++/Java/JS/TS/Go: removes `//` and `/* ... */` comments; trims redundant spaces.
-    *   CSS: removes `/* ... */` comments; trims redundant spaces.
-    *   Python/Shell/Ruby/Perl: removes `#` comments; preserves strings.
-    *   JSON: minifies by removing insignificant whitespace outside strings.
-*   **Versatile Output Modes**:
-    *   Print to **stdout** to pipe into other commands.
-    *   Save to a named file (`--output`).
-    *   Save to a timestamped file (`--output-dir`).
-    *   Copy directly to the system **clipboard** (`--clipboard`).
-    *   Upload to a private GitHub **Gist** in one command (`--paste`).
-*   **Cross-Platform**: Works on Linux, macOS, and Windows.
+- **Intelligent Filtering**: Use powerful regular expressions (REGEX) to include or exclude specific files and directories.
+- **Git Integration**: Automatically respects your `.gitignore` files to exclude irrelevant content, ensuring a clean output (`--git`).
+- **Precise Content Control**: Decide exactly which files should have their content displayed (`--include-content`) and which should only be listed by path.
+- **Header Stripping**: Automatically remove boilerplate like license headers or comment blocks from file content using regex, on a global (`--strip`) or per-file-type basis (`--strip-scope`).
+- **Content Compaction**: Optionally removes comments and redundant whitespace from file content to create a denser, token‑efficient output for LLMs (`--compact`). Language‑aware behavior:
+  - C/C++/Java/JS/TS/Go: removes `//` and `/* ... */` comments; trims redundant spaces.
+  - CSS: removes `/* ... */` comments; trims redundant spaces.
+  - Python/Shell/Ruby/Perl: removes `#` comments; preserves strings.
+  - JSON: minifies by removing insignificant whitespace outside strings.
+- **Versatile Output Modes**:
+  - Print to **stdout** to pipe into other commands.
+  - Save to a named file (`--output`).
+  - Save to a timestamped file (`--output-dir`).
+  - Copy directly to the system **clipboard** (`--clipboard`).
+  - Upload to a private GitHub **Gist** in one command (`--paste`).
+- **Cross-Platform**: Works on Linux, macOS, and Windows.
 
 ## Installation
 
 ### 1. Prerequisites
 
 #### Build Dependencies
+
 You need `make` and a C compiler, plus the development headers for the following libraries:
-*   **pcre2** (for regular expressions)
-*   **libcurl** (for Gist uploads)
-*   **jansson** (for JSON parsing for Gist uploads)
+
+- **pcre2** (for regular expressions)
+- **libcurl** (for Gist uploads)
+- **jansson** (for JSON parsing for Gist uploads)
 
 **On Debian / Ubuntu:**
+
 ```bash
 sudo apt-get install build-essential libpcre2-dev libcurl4-openssl-dev libjansson-dev
 ```
 
 **On macOS (using Homebrew):**
+
 ```bash
 brew install pcre2 curl jansson
 ```
 
 #### Runtime Dependencies (Optional)
+
 For the clipboard feature (`-c`, `--clipboard`), `recap` relies on standard system utilities.
 
-*   **Linux**: `xclip` (for X11), `xsel` (alternative X11 tool), or `wl-clipboard` (for Wayland).
-    ```bash
-    # For X11-based systems
-    sudo apt-get install xclip
-    # Alternative X11 clipboard helper
-    sudo apt-get install xsel
-    # For Wayland-based systems
-    sudo apt-get install wl-clipboard
-    ```
-*   **macOS / Windows**: The necessary utilities (`pbcopy` and `clip.exe`) are pre-installed.
+- **Linux**: `xclip` (for X11), `xsel` (alternative X11 tool), or `wl-clipboard` (for Wayland).
+  ```bash
+  # For X11-based systems
+  sudo apt-get install xclip
+  # Alternative X11 clipboard helper
+  sudo apt-get install xsel
+  # For Wayland-based systems
+  sudo apt-get install wl-clipboard
+  ```
+- **macOS / Windows**: The necessary utilities (`pbcopy` and `clip.exe`) are pre-installed.
 
 ### 2. Building from Source
 
 1.  **Clone the repository:**
+
     ```bash
     git clone https://github.com/trethore/RECAP.git
     cd RECAP
@@ -80,12 +86,14 @@ For the clipboard feature (`-c`, `--clipboard`), `recap` relies on standard syst
 ## Usage Examples
 
 #### Basic: List all files, showing content for source and markdown
+
 ```bash
 # Process src and docs, showing content for c, h, and md files
 recap src docs --include-content '\.(c|h|md)$'
 ```
 
 #### Filtering: Use `.gitignore` and exclude test directories
+
 ```bash
 # Use gitignore rules but also explicitly exclude any 'test' directories
 recap --git --exclude '/test/'
@@ -94,13 +102,16 @@ recap --git --exclude '/test/'
 You can optionally point `--git` at a specific ignore file: `recap --git .myignore`.
 
 #### Clipboard: Get all Python files and copy to clipboard
+
 This is perfect for quickly providing context to an AI.
+
 ```bash
 # Find all Python files, respect .gitignore, and copy the result
 recap --git --include-content '\.py$' --clipboard
 ```
 
 #### Advanced: Strip license headers from JS files and upload to Gist
+
 A powerful one-liner to package and share code.
 
 ```bash
@@ -113,10 +124,12 @@ recap -I '\.js$' -S '\.js$' '^\s*/\*\*.*?\*/\s*' --paste
 ```
 
 #### Compact: Minify JSON and strip code comments
+
 ```bash
 # Minify JSON and compact common source files, respecting .gitignore
 recap --git --compact -I '\.(c|h|cpp|hpp|js|ts|go|json)$'
 ```
+
 #### Maintenance: Clean up old outputs
 
 ```bash
@@ -132,6 +145,7 @@ recap --clear
 - **Alternative**: `bash test/run-integration-tests.sh` — Run the test runner directly.
 
 Notes:
+
 - **Build step**: The `test` target will build the `recap` binary if it's missing; ensure the development headers for `pcre2`, `libcurl`, and `jansson` are installed.
 - **Environment**: The test runner copies `test/` into a temporary workspace and executes the repository `recap` binary. Set the `RECAP_BIN` environment variable to override the binary path if needed.
 
@@ -159,6 +173,8 @@ bash test/run-benchmarks.sh --runs 20 --show-runs
 
 - Gist uploads: private Gists via `--paste` use `GITHUB_API_KEY` by default; you can also pass a token directly: `--paste <KEY>`.
 - File size caps: individual file content blocks are limited to 10 MB; files larger than this are not inlined in the output. Gist uploads also enforce a 10 MB limit.
+- Output format: when only listing paths (e.g., using `-i` without `-I`), results are one path per line with no separators; when showing file contents via `--include-content`, `---` lines separate content blocks and mark the boundary before any following path-only listings.
+
 ## Contributing
 
 Contributions are welcome and greatly appreciated! Whether it's reporting a bug, proposing a new feature, or submitting a code change, your help is valuable.
@@ -167,8 +183,8 @@ Contributions are welcome and greatly appreciated! Whether it's reporting a bug,
 
 The best way to report a bug or request a new feature is to [open an issue](https://github.com/trethore/RECAP/issues) on GitHub.
 
-*   **For Bug Reports**: Please include your operating system, the command you ran, the output you received, and what you expected to happen.
-*   **For Feature Requests**: Please provide a clear description of the feature you'd like to see and why it would be useful.
+- **For Bug Reports**: Please include your operating system, the command you ran, the output you received, and what you expected to happen.
+- **For Feature Requests**: Please provide a clear description of the feature you'd like to see and why it would be useful.
 
 ### Submitting Changes (Pull Requests)
 

doc/recap.1

@@ -6,6 +6,8 @@ recap \- capture the structure and content of a workspace and consolidate it int
 [\fIOPTION\fR]... [\fIPATH\fR]...
 .SH DESCRIPTION
 A command-line tool designed to capture the structure and content of a workspace and consolidate it into a single text output. This output can be redirected to a file or piped directly, making it ideal for providing context to AI models that need to understand the project's layout and relevant code. It uses extended regular expressions for powerful filtering of paths and content.
+.PP
+When only listing paths (for example, using \fB-i\fR without \fB-I\fR), output is one path per line with no separators. When showing file content via \fB-I\fR, a line containing \fB---\fR is printed between each content block and before any subsequent path-only listings.
 .SH OPTIONS
 All filters use extended REGEX. Mandatory arguments to long options are mandatory for short options too.
 .TP
@@ -89,4 +91,4 @@ Report issues at:
 .BR https://github.com/trethore/RECAP
 .SH SEE ALSO
 .if !d MR .ds MR \\fB\\$1\\fR(\\$2)
-.MR cat 1
+.MR cat 1

src/traverse.c

@@ -155,21 +155,36 @@ static void write_file_content_block(const char* full_path, const char* rel_path
 }
 
 static void print_output(recap_context* ctx) {
+    int include_content_mode = (ctx->content_include_filters.count > 0);
+    int content_blocks = 0;
+    int last_output_was_content = 0;
+
     for (size_t i = 0; i < ctx->matched_files.count; i++) {
         const path_entry* entry = &ctx->matched_files.items[i];
         const char* full_path = entry->full_path;
         const char* rel_path = entry->rel_path;
+        int show_content = should_show_content(rel_path, full_path, ctx);
 
-        if (i > 0) {
-            fprintf(ctx->output_stream, "---\n");
+        if (include_content_mode) {
+            if (show_content) {
+                if (content_blocks > 0) {
+                    fprintf(ctx->output_stream, "---\n");
+                }
+                write_file_content_block(full_path, rel_path, ctx);
+                content_blocks++;
+                last_output_was_content = 1;
+            }
+            else {
+                if (last_output_was_content) {
+                    fprintf(ctx->output_stream, "---\n");
+                }
+                fprintf(ctx->output_stream, "%s\n", rel_path);
+                last_output_was_content = 0;
+            }
+            continue;
         }
 
-        if (should_show_content(rel_path, full_path, ctx)) {
-            write_file_content_block(full_path, rel_path, ctx);
-        }
-        else {
-            fprintf(ctx->output_stream, "%s\n", rel_path);
-        }
+        fprintf(ctx->output_stream, "%s\n", rel_path);
     }
 }