✅ ISSUE FIXED: Environment Variables Not Loading

What Was Wrong

When you tried to run option 6 (Check Opportunities), you got:

Error: GEMINI_API_KEY not found in .env file

Root Cause:

• The .env file is in C:\dev\itblogpros\.env (parent directory)
• Scripts run from C:\dev\itblogpros\_automation\ (subdirectory)
• The scripts weren't looking in the right place for the .env file

What Was Fixed

✅ Updated gemini-article-generator.js

• Now loads .env from parent directory: path.join(__dirname, '..', '.env')

✅ Updated integrated-system.js

• Also loads .env from parent directory

✅ Created test-env.js

• New script to verify all environment variables are loading correctly
• Shows which variables are present (with masked API keys) and which are missing

✅ Updated PowerShell Menu

• Added option E - Test Environment Variables
• This runs test-env.js to verify everything is working

Try It Now

Method 1: Run the PowerShell Menu Again

1. Open PowerShell in the _automation directory:

cd C:\dev\itblogpros\_automation
.\START-HERE.ps1

2. Press E to test environment variables

   • You should see ✅ checkmarks next to all 8 variables
   • API keys will be partially masked for security

3. If all variables show ✅, press 6 to check opportunities

   • This should now work without errors!

Method 2: Test Manually (Faster)

Just run these two commands:

cd C:\dev\itblogpros\_automation
node test-env.js

If you see ✅ next to all variables, you're good! The issue is fixed.

Method 3: Try Checking Opportunities Directly

cd C:\dev\itblogpros\_automation
node integrated-system.js opportunities

This should now work and show you top article opportunities from Bing.

What You Should See (Success)

When you run node test-env.js, you should see:

=== Environment Variable Test ===

✅ GEMINI_API_KEY: AIzaSyB2Bw...PQ
✅ GEMINI_MODEL: gemini-1.5-flash-latest
✅ MAX_WORD_COUNT: 1500
✅ MIN_WORD_COUNT: 1200
✅ TARGET_WORD_COUNT: 1400
✅ BING_API_KEY: a280df6736...8a5b08
✅ INDEXNOW_KEY: 635be2ddd7...8a39
✅ SITE_URL: https://itblogpros.com

========================================
✅ All environment variables loaded successfully!

You can now run:
  node integrated-system.js opportunities

If You Still Get Errors

Error: "Cannot find module 'dotenv'"

Solution:

cd C:\dev\itblogpros
npm install dotenv

Error: "opportunities-latest.json not found"

Solution: You need to generate the Bing opportunities first:

# From PowerShell menu, press 9
# OR run directly:
cd C:\dev\itblogpros
node run-bing-analysis.js

Error: Still can't find GEMINI_API_KEY

Check your .env file:

cd C:\dev\itblogpros
notepad .env

Make sure it contains this line:

GEMINI_API_KEY=AIzaSyB2BwTcHD5XXgGexBsSwhtZCcL6YqwWPPQ

If not, add it and save the file.

Next Steps

Once the environment test passes (all ✅), you're ready to:

1. Check Opportunities (Menu option 6):

node integrated-system.js opportunities

This shows you the best article topics from Bing data.

2. Generate a Test Article (Menu option T):

node integrated-system.js test

This generates a full 1200-1500 word article with:

• Bing opportunity data integration
• Amazon affiliate links
• FAQ section
• Auto-submission to Bing if quality ≥ 80

3. Start Regular Generation (Menu option 4): Once testing works, start creating real articles!

Summary

You should now be able to:

• ✅ Check Bing opportunities
• ✅ Generate articles with Gemini
• ✅ Use all menu options without errors

Try running the PowerShell menu again and press E to verify everything is working!

Files Changed:

• gemini-article-generator.js - Fixed dotenv path
• integrated-system.js - Fixed dotenv path
• START-HERE.ps1 - Added environment test option
• test-env.js - New verification script
• TROUBLESHOOTING.md - Complete troubleshooting guide

Need More Help? See TROUBLESHOOTING.md for solutions to common issues.