pipes.py

A Python implementation of the classic pipes.sh. Watch colorful pipes grow and spread across your terminal in mesmerizing patterns.

What's new in v2.0.0 ?!

Major rewrite. Here's what changed:

Tooling:

• Poetry → uv
• Added mypy (strict type checking)
• Added ruff (linter)
• Reorganized from src/pipes/py/ to src/pipes/

Code:

• Split into modules instead of one big file
• Full type hints
• Better architecture

Breaking:

• Needs Python 3.10+
• Module path changed (but CLI is same)

All CLI arguments work the same. Config format is backwards compatible.

Install

pip install pipes-py

Build from source:

git clone https://github.com/elliottophellia/pipes.py
cd pipes.py
uv build
pip install dist/pipes_py-2.0.0-py3-none-any.whl

Usage

pipes-py                    # basic
pipes-py -p 5 -f 60         # 5 pipes at 60 fps
pipes-py -R -P 2            # random start with curved pipes
pipes-py -p 3 -C -B         # 3 pipes, no color, no bold

Options

-p, --pipes N         number of pipes (default: 1)
-f, --fps N           frames per second, 20-100 (default: 75)
-s, --steady N        steadiness, 5-15 (default: 13)
-r, --limit N         character limit before screen reset
-R, --random          start pipes at random positions
-B, --no-bold         disable bold characters
-C, --no-color        disable colors
-P N                  pipe style 0-9 (default: 0)
-K, --keep-style      keep pipe style when wrapping around screen
-S, --save-config     save current settings as default
-v, --version         show version

Quit with ? or ESC.

Interactive keys

While running:

• O - decrease steadiness (more turns)
• P - increase steadiness (fewer turns)
• D - decrease FPS (slower)
• F - increase FPS (faster)
• B - toggle bold
• C - toggle color
• K - toggle keep style on wrap

Pipe styles

10 styles available:

• 0 - heavy box-drawing (┃┏┓┛━)
• 1 - curved (│╭╮╯─)
• 2 - light box-drawing (│┌┐┘─)
• 3 - double box-drawing (║╔╗╝═)
• 4 - knobby (|+-+)
• 5 - angles (|/-)
• 6 - dots (.o...)
• 7 - dots with o (.ooo.)
• 8 - slashes (-/|)
• 9 - mixed Unicode (╿┍┑┚╼)

Try them: pipes-py -P 1 -p 3

Config

Config location:

• Linux/macOS: ~/.config/pipes-py/config.json
• Windows: %LOCALAPPDATA%\pipes-py\config.json

{
  "pipes": 1,
  "fps": 75,
  "steady": 13,
  "limit": 2000,
  "random_start": false,
  "bold": true,
  "color": true,
  "keep_style": false,
  "colors": [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 0],
  "pipe_types": [0]
}

Use -S to save current settings or edit the file directly.

Dev

git clone https://github.com/elliottophellia/pipes.py
cd pipes.py
uv sync
uv run python -m pipes

# checks
uv run ruff check src/pipes
uv run mypy src/pipes

# build
uv build

Code is in src/pipes/:

• types.py - enums/dataclasses
• config.py - file I/O
• renderer.py - drawing
• pipes.py - state
• __main__.py - CLI

License

This project is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution Share Alike 4.0 International (CC-BY-SA-4.0). For more information, please refer to the LICENSE file included in this repository.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

1. Fork the repository
2. Create your feature branch (git checkout -b feature/AmazingFeature)
3. Write your amazing code
4. Make sure pass ruff check and mypy first
5. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add some AmazingFeature')
6. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/AmazingFeature)
7. Open a Pull Request