mcp-better — built for 7/28

NONE | GOOD | [BETTER] | BEST

(protocol 2026-07-28 — the modern MCP release)

the book is the app is the book

AAIF-verified modern MCP textbook that runs. Rust · rmcp 3.0 · Discover · stamped list cache.
Book: textbook/ — what · why · how · doctrine.
App: this binary + smokes. Lesson after lesson, version after version — knowledge compounds.

BEST (persistent AI project context) lives at faf.one/agents — one hop up from this textbook.

What is 7/28?

Name	What it is
7/28	The era name — speakable, brandable. “Built for 7/28.”
2026-07-28	The protocol version — the date string on the wire / in SDKs.

7/28 is a great name. 2026-07-28 is a date.
Humans say 7/28. Machines negotiate 2026-07-28.

What to expect

1. Built for 7/28 — not bolted onto a legacy server (official rmcp 3.0).
2. Honest surface — transport and capabilities match docs and CI.
3. Roadmap expands the era — versions add road; they do not “become” 7/28 later.

Version	Lesson (the version is the lesson)
v0.1	7/28 over stdio — Discover, stamped ttlMs / cacheScope, stable order, health + echo
v0.2	Same 7/28 era + Streamable HTTP road + routing headers (Mcp-Method / Mcp-Name)
v0.3	Same era + deeper correctness — multi-list + restart-order smokes · mcp-worse contrast

What BETTER means

1. Protocol honesty — claim 7/28 / 2026-07-28 only for surfaces you implement and test.
2. Discover-compatible — clients should use ClientLifecycleMode::Discover (or Auto → 7/28), not only legacy initialize.
3. List cache stamps — tools/list returns positive ttlMs and cacheScope (static catalog → public). SDK defaults are unstamped.
4. Stable tool order — same process, same order across N list calls.
5. Transports — stdio (default) and Streamable HTTP (--http) in the same 7/28 era.

Quickstart (≤10 min)

# Requires Rust stable (1.85+)
git clone https://github.com/Wolfe-Jam/mcp-better.git
cd mcp-better
cargo build --bins
cargo test
cargo run --example stdio-client
# louder 0.3 smokes (build --bins first; or: bash scripts/ci.sh)
MCP_BETTER_BIN="$(pwd)/target/debug/mcp-better" cargo run --example order-restart-smoke
MCP_BETTER_BIN="$(pwd)/target/debug/mcp-better" \
  MCP_WORSE_BIN="$(pwd)/target/debug/mcp-worse" \
  cargo run --example contrast-smoke
MCP_BETTER_BIN="$(pwd)/target/debug/mcp-better" cargo run --example http-smoke

stdio (default — Cursor / Claude Desktop):

cargo run --release
# or from crates.io:
cargo install mcp-better --version 0.3.0
mcp-better --help
# optional lying companion (teaching only — not for hosts):
# cargo install mcp-better --version 0.3.0 --bin mcp-worse

First cargo install compiles the ecosystem once (not 100+ of our tools — just Rust deps). One-time wait; then you’re done.

Streamable HTTP (local demo only — see SECURITY.md):

cargo run --release -- --http
# http://127.0.0.1:8787/mcp
# MCP_BETTER_HTTP_ADDR=127.0.0.1:9000 mcp-better --http

Transport selection (CLI wins over env):

How	Value
CLI	mcp-better (stdio) · mcp-better --http · mcp-better --stdio
Bare args	http / stdio (same meaning as flags)
Env	MCP_TRANSPORT or MCP_BETTER_TRANSPORT → stdio | http (MCP_TRANSPORT first if both set)
HTTP bind	MCP_BETTER_HTTP_ADDR — default 127.0.0.1:8787. Do not use 0.0.0.0 unless you accept an unauthenticated open endpoint.

Tools

Tool	Purpose
health	Liveness — status, version, protocol. No side effects. Not a k8s probe contract.
echo	Pure demo — returns message unchanged.

Protocol claims (v0.2 — same 7/28 era, more road)

Surface	Status
Era / protocol	7/28 · negotiated 2026-07-28 (Discover preferred)
Transport	stdio (default) · Streamable HTTP (--http)
HTTP mode	Stateless for 7/28 · json_response · local Host guards
Routing headers	Streamable HTTP POSTs use Mcp-Method and Mcp-Name when naming a tool (SEP-2243); http-smoke asserts this happy path
Capabilities	tools only
List cache	ttlMs=60000, cacheScope=public, order health→echo (restart-stable)
Lying companion	mcp-worse — unstamped + reversed order (contrast-smoke only)
Resources / prompts / OAuth / tasks	out of hero

Textbook

The book is the app is the book — textbook/ (Season 1 · doctrine).

Start: textbook/README.md → lab Ch 09.

Non-goals (GOOD-era habits we refuse)

• Shipping unstamped list results while claiming 7/28 modernity
• Requiring project.faf or any BEST tooling on this repo’s main branch
• Treating stdio as “not real 7/28” — stdio is a first-class 7/28 transport
• FAF install tax in the AAIF lede — this repo is protocol textbook, not a FAF product

Registry identity

• MCP Registry name: mcp-name: io.github.Wolfe-Jam/mcp-better
• registryType: cargo · identifier: mcp-better
• Package transport in server.json is stdio only — by design.
  cargo install mcp-better / Desktop / Cursor hosts spawn the binary on stdio.
  Streamable HTTP (--http) is an opt-in local demo in the same binary and the same 7/28 era; it is not a second Registry package. Discover it in this README and --help, not as a remote registry transport.

See server.json. Not one.faf/*.

Publish

Ship process: /pubbetter (skill) · short form docs/PUBBETTER.md · local ship bar:

export PATH="$HOME/.cargo/bin:$PATH"
bash scripts/ci.sh

BEST

For persistent, versionable AI project context beyond a protocol textbook:

https://faf.one/agents

Docs

• BETTER.md — ladder + claim surface
• docs/BETTER-BEST.md — BETTER vs BEST
• GETTING-STARTED.md
• docs/SDK-NOTES.md — serve vs Discover honesty
• SECURITY.md · CONTRIBUTING.md

License

MIT — see LICENSE.