MCP Server Demos

Example MCP (Model Context Protocol) servers demonstrating how to build custom integrations for Claude Code and other MCP clients.

What is MCP?

The Model Context Protocol (MCP) is an open standard that enables AI applications to securely connect to external data sources and tools. It provides a universal interface for AI assistants to interact with various systems.

Demo Servers

This repository contains two example MCP servers:

1. News Server (Python)

Location: news-mcp-server/

A Python-based MCP server that fetches news headlines from RSS feeds.

Tools:

get_headlines: Get latest news by category (technology, general, business, sports)
get_news_from_source: Get news from specific sources (BBC, Reuters, TechCrunch, The Verge, Wired, ESPN, WSJ)

Tech Stack: Python 3, mcp SDK, feedparser, httpx

2. Weather Server (Node.js)

Location: weather-mcp-server/

A Node.js-based MCP server that provides current weather information.

Tools:

get_weather: Get current weather for any city worldwide

Tech Stack: Node.js, @modelcontextprotocol/sdk, wttr.in API

Quick Start

Prerequisites

Python 3.8+ (for news server)
Node.js 18+ (for weather server)
Claude Code or another MCP client
MCP Inspector (optional, for testing)

Installation

News Server (Python)

cd news-mcp-server

# Create virtual environment
python3 -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: venv\Scripts\activate

# Install dependencies
pip install -r requirements.txt

Weather Server (Node.js)

cd weather-mcp-server

# Install dependencies
npm install

Configuration

This repository includes a .mcp.json configuration file that works when you use the repository as your working directory in Claude Code.

Using the Included Configuration

The .mcp.json file in the repository root is configured to work with relative paths:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "news": {
      "command": "./news-mcp-server/venv/bin/python",
      "args": ["news-mcp-server/news-server.py"]
    },
    "weather": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["weather-mcp-server/server.js"]
    }
  }
}

To use this configuration:

Make sure both servers are installed (see Installation section above)
Open Claude Code in the mcp-demos directory
Restart Claude Code to load the configuration

Alternative: CLI Configuration

You can also add these servers using the Claude Code CLI:

# Add news server (use absolute path to venv python)
claude mcp add --transport stdio news \
  -- /absolute/path/to/mcp-demos/news-mcp-server/venv/bin/python \
  news-mcp-server/news-server.py

# Add weather server
claude mcp add --transport stdio weather \
  -- node weather-mcp-server/server.js

Verify Installation

claude mcp list

You should see both news and weather servers listed.

Testing with MCP Inspector

The MCP Inspector is a browser-based tool for testing MCP servers.

Test News Server

# From the repository root
npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector \
  /absolute/path/to/mcp-demos/news-mcp-server/venv/bin/python \
  /absolute/path/to/mcp-demos/news-mcp-server/news-server.py

Note: You must use absolute paths with the Inspector. Replace /absolute/path/to/mcp-demos with the actual path.

Test Weather Server

# From the repository root
npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector \
  node \
  /absolute/path/to/mcp-demos/weather-mcp-server/server.js

The Inspector will:

Start your MCP server
Launch a web UI at http://localhost:6274
Allow you to interactively test tools and view logs

Usage Examples

Once configured in Claude Code, you can ask:

"What's the weather in Tokyo?"
"Get me the latest tech news"
"Show me sports headlines"
"What's the news from BBC?"

Project Structure

mcp-demos/
├── README.md
├── .mcp.json                # MCP server configuration
├── news-mcp-server/
│   ├── news-server.py       # Python MCP server implementation
│   ├── requirements.txt     # Python dependencies
│   └── venv/                # Python virtual environment (created during setup)
└── weather-mcp-server/
    ├── server.js            # Node.js MCP server implementation
    ├── package.json         # Node.js dependencies
    ├── package-lock.json    # Locked dependency versions
    └── node_modules/        # Node.js packages (created during setup)

Troubleshooting

News Server Issues

Module not found errors:

# Make sure virtual environment is activated and dependencies installed
cd news-mcp-server
source venv/bin/activate
pip install -r requirements.txt

Server not responding:

Check that the venv is created and activated
Verify all dependencies are installed
Check Claude Code logs for error messages
Ensure you're running Claude Code from the mcp-demos directory

Weather Server Issues