https://github.com/kahliburke/tachikoma.jl
Build rich terminal apps in Julia — widgets, layouts, sixel graphics, Kitty graphics, animations, and more
https://github.com/kahliburke/tachikoma.jl
animation async canvas charting cli dashboard julia julia-package juliac kitty layout markdown pixel-graphics sixel terminal terminal-ui text-ui themes tui widgets
Last synced: about 17 hours ago
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Build rich terminal apps in Julia — widgets, layouts, sixel graphics, Kitty graphics, animations, and more
- Host: GitHub
- URL: https://github.com/kahliburke/tachikoma.jl
- Owner: kahliburke
- License: mit
- Created: 2026-02-26T21:02:03.000Z (4 months ago)
- Default Branch: main
- Last Pushed: 2026-06-30T07:43:36.000Z (9 days ago)
- Last Synced: 2026-06-30T09:24:54.687Z (8 days ago)
- Topics: animation, async, canvas, charting, cli, dashboard, julia, julia-package, juliac, kitty, layout, markdown, pixel-graphics, sixel, terminal, terminal-ui, text-ui, themes, tui, widgets
- Language: Julia
- Homepage: https://kahliburke.github.io/Tachikoma.jl/dev/
- Size: 12.3 MB
- Stars: 152
- Watchers: 5
- Forks: 6
- Open Issues: 0
-
Metadata Files:
- Readme: README.md
- License: LICENSE
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README
Tachikoma.jl
A terminal UI framework for Julia
---
Tachikoma is a pure-Julia framework for building rich, interactive terminal applications. It provides an Elm-inspired `Model`/`update!`/`view` architecture, a 60fps event loop with double-buffered rendering, 30+ composable widgets, constraint-based layouts, animation primitives, kitty/sixel pixel graphics, and built-in recording and export to SVG/GIF.
## Features
**Architecture** — Declarative Elm pattern with clean separation of state, logic, and rendering. 60fps event loop with automatic frame pacing and double-buffered output.
**30+ Widgets** — Text inputs, text areas, code editor with syntax highlighting, data tables with column resize and sort, forms with validation and Tab navigation, tree views, charts, bar charts, sparklines, calendars, modals, dropdowns, radio groups, checkboxes, progress indicators, scrollable panes, markdown viewer, and more.
**Constraint Layouts** — `Fixed`, `Fill`, `Percent`, `Min`, `Max`, and `Ratio` constraints. Draggable resizable pane borders with layout persistence via Preferences.jl.
**Animation** — Tweens with 10 easing functions, physics-based springs, timelines for sequencing, and organic effects: `noise`, `fbm`, `pulse`, `breathe`, `shimmer`, `jitter`, `flicker`, `drift`, `glow`.
**Graphics** — Three rendering backends: Braille dots (2x4), quadrant blocks (2x2), and pixel rendering (16x32 per cell, Kitty or sixel). Vector drawing API with lines, arcs, circles, and shapes.
**24 Themes** — 11 dark and 13 light palettes with hot-swappable switching via **Ctrl+\\** theme selector.
**Recording & Export** — Live recording via `Ctrl+R`, headless `record_app()`/`record_widget()` for CI, native `.tach` format with Zstd compression, export to SVG and GIF.
**Async Tasks** — Channel-based background work that preserves the single-threaded Elm architecture. Cancel tokens, timers, and repeat scheduling.
**Testing** — `TestBackend` for headless widget rendering with `char_at()`, `style_at()`, `row_text()`, `find_text()` inspection APIs. Property-based testing with Supposition.jl.
## Quick Start
```julia
using Pkg
Pkg.add("Tachikoma")
```
```julia
using Tachikoma
@tachikoma_app
@kwdef mutable struct Life <: Model
quit::Bool = false
grid::Matrix{Bool} = rand(24, 80) .< 0.25
end
should_quit(m::Life) = m.quit
function update!(m::Life, e::KeyEvent)
e.key == :escape && (m.quit = true)
end
function view(m::Life, f::Frame)
h, w = size(m.grid)
g = m.grid
nc = [sum(g[mod1(i+di,h), mod1(j+dj,w)]
for di in -1:1, dj in -1:1) - g[i,j]
for i in 1:h, j in 1:w]
g .= (nc .== 3) .| (g .& (nc .== 2))
a, buf = f.area, f.buffer
cs = [:primary, :accent, :success,
:warning, :error]
for i in 1:min(h, a.height),
j in 1:min(w, a.width)
g[i,j] || continue
set_char!(buf, a.x+j-1, a.y+i-1,
'█', tstyle(cs[clamp(nc[i,j],1,5)]))
end
end
app(Life())
```
See the [Getting Started](https://kahliburke.github.io/Tachikoma.jl/dev/getting-started) guide for a more complete walkthrough with layouts, widgets, and input handling.
## Demos
The `demos/TachikomaDemos` package includes 25+ interactive demos with a launcher menu:
```julia
using Pkg
Pkg.activate("demos/TachikomaDemos")
Pkg.instantiate()
using TachikomaDemos
launcher() # interactive menu
```
Or run individual demos directly: `dashboard()`, `snake()`, `life()`, `sysmon()`, `anim_demo()`, `windows_demo()`, `chart_demo()`, `form_demo()`, `effects_demo()`, and more.
## Gallery
Dashboard
Form with Validation
Animation Showcase
Todo List
GitHub PR Viewer
Constraint Explorer
Dotwave Background
Phylogenetic Tree
## Widget Catalog
| Category | Widgets |
|:---------|:--------|
| **Text & Display** | `Block`, `Paragraph`, `BigText`, `StatusBar`, `Span`, `Separator`, `MarkdownPane` |
| **Input** | `TextInput`, `TextArea`, `CodeEditor`, `Checkbox`, `RadioGroup`, `DropDown`, `Button` |
| **Selection & Lists** | `SelectableList`, `TabBar`, `TreeView`, `Calendar` |
| **Data** | `DataTable`, `Chart`, `BarChart`, `Sparkline`, `Gauge`, `ProgressList` |
| **Layout** | `Container`, `ScrollPane`, `Scrollbar`, `Modal`, `Form`, `FloatingWindow`, `WindowManager` |
| **Graphics** | `Canvas`, `BlockCanvas`, `PixelImage` |
## Backgrounds
Procedural animated backgrounds that composite behind your UI:
| Preset | Description |
|:-------|:------------|
| **DotWave** | Undulating dot-matrix terrain with configurable wave layers |
| **PhyloTree** | Animated phylogenetic branching structures |
| **Cladogram** | Hierarchical cladogram tree visualizations |
## Optional Extensions
```julia
# Markdown rendering
using CommonMark
# GIF export
using FreeTypeAbstraction, ColorTypes
# Tables.jl integration for DataTable
using Tables
```
## Documentation
Full documentation is available at **[kahliburke.github.io/Tachikoma.jl](https://kahliburke.github.io/Tachikoma.jl/dev/)**.
| Section | Description |
|:--------|:------------|
| [Getting Started](https://kahliburke.github.io/Tachikoma.jl/dev/getting-started) | Build your first app in 30 lines |
| [Architecture](https://kahliburke.github.io/Tachikoma.jl/dev/architecture) | The Elm architecture pattern in depth |
| [Layout](https://kahliburke.github.io/Tachikoma.jl/dev/layout) | Constraint-based layout system |
| [Widgets](https://kahliburke.github.io/Tachikoma.jl/dev/widgets) | Complete catalog of all widgets |
| [Animation](https://kahliburke.github.io/Tachikoma.jl/dev/animation) | Tweens, springs, timelines, and organic effects |
| [Graphics](https://kahliburke.github.io/Tachikoma.jl/dev/canvas) | Canvas, BlockCanvas, and pixel rendering |
| [Themes](https://kahliburke.github.io/Tachikoma.jl/dev/styling) | 24 themes (dark + light) with hot-swap switching |
| [Recording](https://kahliburke.github.io/Tachikoma.jl/dev/recording) | Recording and export to SVG/GIF |
| [Testing](https://kahliburke.github.io/Tachikoma.jl/dev/testing) | TestBackend for headless widget testing |
| [API Reference](https://kahliburke.github.io/Tachikoma.jl/dev/api) | Auto-generated API documentation |
## Requirements
- Julia 1.10+
- A terminal with ANSI color support (most modern terminals)
- Kitty or sixel-capable terminal for pixel graphics (kitty, iTerm2, WezTerm, foot, etc.)
## Contributing
Contributions are welcome. Please open an issue to discuss proposed changes before submitting a pull request.
## License
MIT — see [LICENSE](LICENSE) for details.