Connecting Frank

Go to nodejs.org, download the LTS version for macOS, and run the installer like any other app. This is the engine Frank runs on — you'll never open it directly.

Move frank.zip into your Downloads folder and double-click it — it becomes a folder called frank at Downloads/frank. Don't rename or move it.

Press ⌘ + Space, type Terminal, press Enter. Copy-paste each line below, pressing Enter after each. The second and third lines download Frank's parts — they take a few minutes and print a lot of text. That's normal.

$ cd ~/Downloads/frank
$ npm install
$ npx playwright install chromium

Every new Terminal window starts outside the frank folder — if a command ever fails with “Could not read package.json”, run the cd line again first.

In your browser: researchandy.com → Dashboard → the Frank card → Connect Frank. You'll get a short code, valid for 10 minutes. Back in Terminal (replace YOURCODE):

$ npm run frank -- pair YOURCODE

You should see Paired ✅. This links this computer to your account — you never do it again.

No terminal for this one. On Dashboard → Connections → University library, paste your library's proxy address and press Save. Your library usually calls this the “EZproxy” or “off-campus access” link — for NUS, for example, it's https://libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/login?url=.

This is just a public web address — never your password. Andy passes it to Frank with each batch, so Frank knocks on the library's front door, where you sign in yourself.

$ cd ~/Downloads/frank
$ npm run frank

Terminal says Frank is up 🤝 and a browser window opens. Leave both open — that window is Frank's workbench. The first time a library page appears in it, sign in as you normally would (2FA and all); Frank remembers the session afterwards.

Two clicks make future sign-ins painless: when the browser offers to save your password, accept — it's stored on your computer only, like in any browser. And when the university asks “Stay signed in?”, say yes — your session then lasts days instead of hours.

Frank keeps your Mac awake while he's running, but closing the laptop lid still puts him to sleep — keep it open until a batch finishes. If a batch does get interrupted, don't re-send it: just start Frank again and he resumes it on his own within a few minutes.

On Dashboard → History, press Get PDFs on any search and tick the papers you want. Papers with a free copy download instantly as a zip; for the paywalled rest, press Send to Frank.

Frank works through them one at a time, at a polite human pace — a big batch takes a while, on purpose. Finished PDFs land in Downloads → Frank PDFs, one folder per batch, with a Frank - missed.txt note listing anything he couldn't get. Andy messages you on Telegram when he's done.

Frank improves as testers hit problems, and the download button at the top of this page is always the current build — so updating is just downloading it again. No need to wait for us to send anything.

Your pairing and library settings survive. They live in a separate place on your Mac, not inside the folder, so you never re-pair and never re-enter your library address.

Stop Frank first (click his Terminal window, press Ctrl + C). Drag the old Downloads/frank folder to the Trash — it matters that the old one is gone, or the new zip unpacks alongside it as frank 2 and you carry on running the old copy. Then unzip the new download and:

$ cd ~/Downloads/frank
$ npm install
$ npm run frank

His first line prints the version, like Frank v1.1.0 is up. If we asked you to update and that number hasn't changed, the old folder is still the one you're running.

To stop Frank: click the Terminal window and press Ctrl + C (or close the window). To start again another day, repeat step 5 — nothing else.