Ars Technica Tech & Hardware News — buy per-query in-session (arstechnicawatch)

data_preview

Read-onlyIdempotent

✅ No API key needed. Listing: arstechnicawatch: Ars Technica Tech, IT & Hardware News. Price 0.01 USDC/query (max 20 queries/session). Sample questions: What is Ars Technica covering today?; Latest Ars Technica hardware and gadget stories. FREE preview — no key, no payment. Try one of the sample questions now.

Tool call template

This tool declares no required parameters. Add optional parameters from the input schema as needed.

{
  "id": 1,
  "jsonrpc": "2.0",
  "method": "tools/call",
  "params": {
    "arguments": {},
    "name": "data_preview"
  }
}

Input Schema

Name	Required	Description	Default
`slug`	No	Public listing slug. Defaults to the routed session's listing when connected via /mcp/data/{slug}/http.
`question`	No	Optional free-text question you'd ask this data (echoed back).

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

First observedSep 10, 2026

TDQS

C2.6/5.0

Behavior3/5

Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?

Annotations already declare readOnlyHint, idempotentHint, destructiveHint=false and openWorldHint=false, so safety is covered. The description adds genuinely non-annotation context: no API key required, 0.01 USDC per query, max 20 queries/session, and a free preview tier. However, the pricing is muddled (is the preview free while the query costs 0.01?) and it never says what the call returns, so the added value is partial.

Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.

Conciseness2/5

Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?

It opens with an emoji and a promotional fragment ('✅ No API key needed'), repeats the free/no-key message twice, and buries the actual tool purpose behind listing marketing. Several sentences do not earn their place, and the true scope statement never appears.

Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.

Completeness2/5

Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?

There is no output schema, so the description must explain what a preview yields, and it does not: an agent cannot tell whether it gets listing metadata, a sample answer, or nothing beyond an echo. For a preview/gateway tool meant to lead into a paid session, that gap is material.

Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.

Parameters3/5

Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?

Schema description coverage is 100% and only two optional parameters exist, so the schema already explains slug routing and that question is echoed back. The description only implies parameters through the 'Sample questions' examples and does not add format or behavioral meaning beyond the schema, which is the correct baseline for a fully documented schema.

Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.

Purpose3/5

Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?

The phrase 'FREE preview' plus the listing name implies a free sample of a paid data listing, but the description never states plainly what the tool does (return listing metadata? answer a sample question?). It is dominated by marketing copy for the arstechnicawatch listing, and it does not distinguish itself from siblings like data_session_query or data_session_open.

Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.

Usage Guidelines2/5

Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?

'Try one of the sample questions now' is a call to action, not usage guidance. There is no statement of when to call this versus opening a session and running the paid query, no prerequisite, and no exclusion; the relationship to the sibling data_session_query is left entirely for the agent to infer.

Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.

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