GiTerm - Git & GitHub Terminal User Interface

A powerful Git and GitHub Terminal User Interface (TUI) client written in Ruby using rcurses. Browse repositories, manage issues and pull requests, and perform Git operations - all from your terminal.

Key Features

🔧 Git Operations

• Status View (s) - View git status with colored file indicators
• Diff View (d) - Show file diffs with syntax highlighting
• Log View (l) - Browse commit history with details
• Branch Management (b) - List, switch, and manage branches
• Stage/Unstage (a/u) - Stage or unstage files
• Commit (c) - Commit changes with message editor
• Push/Pull (p/P) - Sync with remote repositories
• Repository Switching (:cd) - Change to different git repositories

🌐 GitHub Integration

• Repository Browser (TAB) - Browse all your GitHub repositories with:
  • Color-coded organizations for visual distinction
  • Star/fork/issue counts
  • Language indicators
  • README preview with delayed fetching
  • File tree exploration
• Issues (i) - View repository issues
• Pull Requests (p in GitHub mode) - View pull requests
• Search (/) - Search across repositories
• Automatic repository detection from git remote

🎯 Enhanced Navigation

• List Navigation

  • j/k or ↓/↑ - Move up/down
  • PgUp/PgDn - Page up/down
  • g/G or HOME/END - Jump to top/bottom
  • Smooth wrapping at list boundaries

• Right Pane Scrolling

  • Shift-↓/Shift-↑ - Line down/up
  • Shift-→/Shift-← - Page down/up

• General

  • TAB - Toggle between Git/GitHub modes
  • h/← - Go back/up one level
  • l/→ or ENTER - Enter/view details
  • ? - Show context-sensitive help
  • r - Refresh current view
  • q - Quit

Command Mode

• : - Enter git command mode
• ! - Enter shell command mode

Screenshots

Git Repository Status View

Shows the enhanced status view with file changes and detailed diff information in the right pane:

Non-Git Directory Support

New in v1.1.0 - GiTerm now runs in non-git directories and offers GitHub integration:

GitHub Repositories Mode

Browse all your GitHub repositories with detailed information and README preview:

Help System

Comprehensive help showing all available keyboard shortcuts:

Requirements

• Ruby 2.7 or higher
• rcurses gem (will be installed automatically)
• Git installed and configured
• GitHub personal access token (for GitHub features)

Installation

Via RubyGems (Recommended)

gem install giterm

Manual Installation

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/isene/GiTerm.git
cd GiTerm

# Make executable
chmod +x giterm

# Install dependencies
gem install rcurses

Usage

Run GiTerm from within any Git repository:

giterm

Or if installed manually:

./giterm

Interface Layout

The interface consists of four panes:

• Top Pane: Current repository, branch, and mode indicator
• Left Pane: List view (files, branches, repos, etc.)
• Right Pane: Detail view with scrollable content
• Bottom Pane: Command input and status messages

Performance Features

• Smart Fetching: Extended content (README, file lists) fetches after 0.5s pause
• Efficient Updates: Only changed content is redrawn
• Mode Memory: Remembers your position when switching between modes

Configuration

GitHub Token Setup

To enable GitHub features, set up a personal access token:

1. Create a token at: https://github.com/settings/tokens
2. Required scopes: repo, read:user
3. Set the environment variable:

# Add to your shell profile (.bashrc, .zshrc, etc.)
export GITHUB_TOKEN=ghp_your_token_here

Custom Configuration

GiTerm looks for configuration in the following order:

1. Environment variable GITHUB_TOKEN
2. Git config: git config --global giterm.token YOUR_TOKEN

Additional Commands

Command Mode (:):

• :cd /path/to/repo - Change to a different git repository
• Any git command - Executes in current repository

Shell Mode (!):

• Execute any shell command from within GiTerm

What's New

Version 1.1.0

• 🏠 Non-Git Directory Support - GiTerm now runs outside git repositories!
• 📊 Enhanced Local Repository Info - Rich repository overview when working tree is clean
• 🔧 Smart Mode Switching - Seamless switching between local Git and GitHub modes
• 🎯 Improved User Experience - Better error handling and helpful guidance
• 📸 Updated Documentation - New screenshots showing all major features

Version 1.0.0

• 🎨 Organization color coding in GitHub mode
• 📜 Right pane scrolling with Shift+Arrow keys
• ⚡ Smart delayed fetching for smooth navigation
• 🔄 Mode-specific index memory
• 📁 Repository switching with :cd command
• 🐛 Fixed display issues and improved performance

Design Philosophy

GiTerm follows these principles:

• Single file implementation - Easy to understand and modify
• Minimal dependencies - Only requires rcurses
• Fast and responsive - Optimized rendering and smart fetching
• Keyboard-driven - No mouse required
• Clean Ruby code - RuboCop compliant and well-documented

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please:

1. Fork the repository
2. Create your feature branch
3. Run RuboCop to ensure code style
4. Submit a pull request

Author

Created by Geir Isene (@isene)

License

Public Domain - Use freely for any purpose.

See Also

• RTFM - Ruby Terminal File Manager
• rcurses - Ruby curses library used by GiTerm