l-command 0.2.0

Smart file and directory viewer

L command

l command is a smart file and directory viewer that can replace both less and ls. It intelligently detects the content type and displays it in the most appropriate way.

Usage

• l /path/to/file: Display file content appropriately
  • Short files: Display using cat
  • Long files: Display using less -RFX
  • JSON files: Format and display using jq
  • Archive files: List contents using appropriate tools (unzip -l, tar -tvf)
  • Binary files: Display using hexdump -C
• l /path/to/directory: Works as ls -la --color=auto /path/to/directory
• l /path/to/json: Detects JSON files and formats them using jq
• l /path/to/archive: Detects archive files (zip, tar, etc.) and lists their contents

Detailed Behavior

• Automatically detects file size and line count, using cat for short files and less for long files
• Detects terminal height and uses less if the file has more lines than the terminal height
• Automatic JSON detection and formatting:
  • Files with .json extension
  • Files without extension but starting with { or [ (UTF-8 encoded)
  • Performs syntax check using jq empty, falling back to default display for invalid JSON
  • Falls back to default display for large JSON files (>10MB)
• Archive file detection and content listing:
  • ZIP files (including .jar, .war, .ear, .apk, .ipa)
  • TAR archives (including .tar.gz, .tgz, .tar.bz2, .tbz2, .tar.xz, .txz, .tar.zst)
• Binary file detection and hexdump display:
  • Uses file command to detect binary files when available
  • Falls back to content-based detection (checking for null bytes and non-printable characters)
  • Displays binary files using hexdump -C
• Directory detection and listing

Options

Currently, the command line arguments are as follows:

• Positional argument path: Path to the file or directory to display (default: current directory .)

Use Cases

• View file content quickly: l file.txt
• Check directory contents at a glance: l ./myfolder
• Format and read JSON files: l data.json
• List contents of archive files: l archive.zip
• View binary files in hexdump format: l binary.bin