opentui

name	opentui
description	Comprehensive OpenTUI skill for building terminal user interfaces. Covers the core imperative API, React reconciler, and Solid reconciler. Use for any TUI development task including components, layout, keyboard handling, animations, and testing.
metadata	{"references":"core, react, solid"}

OpenTUI Platform Skill

Consolidated skill for building terminal user interfaces with OpenTUI. Use decision trees below to find the right framework and components, then load detailed references.

Critical Rules

Follow these rules in all OpenTUI code:

1. Use create-tui for new projects. See framework REFERENCE.md quick starts.
2. create-tui options must come before arguments. bunx create-tui -t react my-app works, bunx create-tui my-app -t react does NOT.
3. Never call process.exit() directly. Use renderer.destroy() (see core/gotchas.md).
4. Text styling requires nested tags in React/Solid. Use modifier elements, not props (see components/text-display.md).

How to Use This Skill

Reference File Structure

Framework references follow a 5-file pattern. Cross-cutting concepts are single-file guides.

Each framework in ./references/<framework>/ contains:

File	Purpose	When to Read
REFERENCE.md	Overview, when to use, quick start	Always read first
api.md	Runtime API, components, hooks	Writing code
configuration.md	Setup, tsconfig, bundling	Configuring a project
patterns.md	Common patterns, best practices	Implementation guidance
gotchas.md	Pitfalls, limitations, debugging	Troubleshooting

Cross-cutting concepts in ./references/<concept>/ have REFERENCE.md as the entry point.

Reading Order

1. Start with REFERENCE.md for your chosen framework
2. Then read additional files relevant to your task:
   • Building components -> api.md + components/<category>.md
   • Setting up project -> configuration.md
   • Layout/positioning -> layout/REFERENCE.md
   • Keyboard/input handling -> keyboard/REFERENCE.md
   • Animations -> animation/REFERENCE.md
   • Troubleshooting -> gotchas.md + testing/REFERENCE.md

Example Paths

./references/react/REFERENCE.md           # Start here for React
./references/react/api.md              # React components and hooks
./references/solid/configuration.md    # Solid project setup
./references/components/inputs.md      # Input, Textarea, Select docs
./references/core/gotchas.md           # Core debugging tips

Runtime Notes

OpenTUI runs on Bun and uses Zig for native builds. Read ./references/core/gotchas.md for runtime requirements and build guidance.

Quick Decision Trees

"Which framework should I use?"

Which framework?
├─ I want full control, maximum performance, no framework overhead
│  └─ core/ (imperative API)
├─ I know React, want familiar component patterns
│  └─ react/ (React reconciler)
├─ I want fine-grained reactivity, optimal re-renders
│  └─ solid/ (Solid reconciler)
└─ I'm building a library/framework on top of OpenTUI
   └─ core/ (imperative API)

"I need to display content"

Display content?
├─ Plain or styled text -> components/text-display.md
├─ Container with borders/background -> components/containers.md
├─ Scrollable content area -> components/containers.md (scrollbox)
├─ ASCII art banner/title -> components/text-display.md (ascii-font)
├─ Code with syntax highlighting -> components/code-diff.md
├─ Diff viewer (unified/split) -> components/code-diff.md
├─ Line numbers with diagnostics -> components/code-diff.md
└─ Markdown content (streaming) -> components/code-diff.md (markdown)

"I need user input"

User input?
├─ Single-line text field -> components/inputs.md (input)
├─ Multi-line text editor -> components/inputs.md (textarea)
├─ Select from a list (vertical) -> components/inputs.md (select)
├─ Tab-based selection (horizontal) -> components/inputs.md (tab-select)
└─ Custom keyboard shortcuts -> keyboard/REFERENCE.md

"I need layout/positioning"

Layout?
├─ Flexbox-style layouts (row, column, wrap) -> layout/REFERENCE.md
├─ Absolute positioning -> layout/patterns.md
├─ Responsive to terminal size -> layout/patterns.md
├─ Centering content -> layout/patterns.md
└─ Complex nested layouts -> layout/patterns.md

"I need animations"

Animations?
├─ Timeline-based animations -> animation/REFERENCE.md
├─ Easing functions -> animation/REFERENCE.md
├─ Property transitions -> animation/REFERENCE.md
└─ Looping animations -> animation/REFERENCE.md

"I need to handle input"

Input handling?
├─ Keyboard events (keypress, release) -> keyboard/REFERENCE.md
├─ Focus management -> keyboard/REFERENCE.md
├─ Paste events -> keyboard/REFERENCE.md
├─ Mouse events -> components/containers.md
└─ Text selection -> components/text-display.md

"I need to test my TUI"

Testing?
├─ Snapshot testing -> testing/REFERENCE.md
├─ Interaction testing -> testing/REFERENCE.md
├─ Test renderer setup -> testing/REFERENCE.md
└─ Debugging tests -> testing/REFERENCE.md

"I need to debug/troubleshoot"

Troubleshooting?
├─ Runtime errors, crashes -> <framework>/gotchas.md
├─ Layout issues -> layout/REFERENCE.md + layout/patterns.md
├─ Input/focus issues -> keyboard/REFERENCE.md
└─ Repro + regression tests -> testing/REFERENCE.md

Troubleshooting Index

• Terminal cleanup, crashes -> core/gotchas.md
• Text styling not applying -> components/text-display.md
• Input focus/shortcuts -> keyboard/REFERENCE.md
• Layout misalignment -> layout/REFERENCE.md
• Mouse wheel scroll issues in nested scrollboxes -> see note below
• Flaky snapshots -> testing/REFERENCE.md

Mouse wheel events and nested scrollboxes

OpenTUI dispatches mouse events to the deepest renderable under the pointer before bubbling to parents. text and code are text-buffer renderables with their own internal scroll state, so a mouse wheel event over text/code inside a parent scrollbox may scroll the line-local text buffer before the parent scrollbox handles the event. This can make single-line content appear to disappear or shift under the cursor.

Do not use stopPropagation() if the parent scrollbox still needs to scroll. preventDefault() is not checked by the internal text-buffer scroll handler. A targeted workaround is to let the event bubble, then restore the child text/code renderable's local scroll offset after its internal handler runs, for example via queueMicrotask(() => { ref.scrollX = 0; ref.scrollY = 0; }).

For component naming differences and text modifiers, see components/REFERENCE.md.

Product Index

Frameworks

Framework	Entry File	Description
Core	./references/core/REFERENCE.md	Imperative API, all primitives
React	./references/react/REFERENCE.md	React reconciler for declarative TUI
Solid	./references/solid/REFERENCE.md	SolidJS reconciler for declarative TUI

Cross-Cutting Concepts

Concept	Entry File	Description
Layout	./references/layout/REFERENCE.md	Yoga/Flexbox layout system
Components	./references/components/REFERENCE.md	Component reference by category
Keyboard	./references/keyboard/REFERENCE.md	Keyboard input handling
Animation	./references/animation/REFERENCE.md	Timeline-based animations
Testing	./references/testing/REFERENCE.md	Test renderer and snapshots

Component Categories

Category	Entry File	Components
Text & Display	./references/components/text-display.md	text, ascii-font, styled text
Containers	./references/components/containers.md	box, scrollbox, borders
Inputs	./references/components/inputs.md	input, textarea, select, tab-select
Code & Diff	./references/components/code-diff.md	code, line-number, diff, markdown

Resources

Repository: https://github.com/anomalyco/opentui Core Docs: https://github.com/anomalyco/opentui/tree/main/packages/core/docs Examples: https://github.com/anomalyco/opentui/tree/main/packages/core/src/examples Awesome List: https://github.com/msmps/awesome-opentui