pyqt-no-signal-widget 0.1.0

A customizable PyQt6 widget displaying a retro 'No Signal' TV animation.

PyQt6 No Signal Widget

A customizable PyQt6 widget displaying a retro 'No Signal' TV animation using embedded HTML/CSS/JS within a QWebEngineView.

Features

• Retro "No Signal" animation with color bars.
• Floating message box with customizable text, scaling with widget size.
• Customizable colors for all animation elements (color bars, text) using:
  • Predefined color names (e.g., 'bright_red', 'original_blue').
  • Standard CSS color strings (e.g., '#FF0000', 'rgba(0,255,0,0.5)').
• Start/Stop controls for the animation with fade-to-black/fade-in effects, including a '⛔️' indicator when stopped.
• Self-contained widget code (src/pyqt_no_signal_widget/no_signal_widget.py).
• Comprehensive example application (example/NoSignalExampleWindow.py) for testing and demonstration.
• Standard Python packaging setup using pyproject.toml.

Project Structure

PyQtNoSignalWidget/
├── src/
│   └── pyqt_no_signal_widget/
│       ├── __init__.py             # Exports NoSignalWidget
│       └── no_signal_widget.py     # Widget source code
├── example/
│   └── NoSignalExampleWindow.py  # Example GUI
├── pyproject.toml                # Build system and package definition
├── README.md                     # This file
└── requirements.txt              # Optional: For development dependencies

Installation

Option 1: From PyPI (Recommended)

pip install pyqt-no-signal-widget

Option 2: From Source (for development)

1. Clone this repository.
2. Navigate to the project root directory (the one containing pyproject.toml) in your terminal.
3. Install in editable mode:

   pip install -e .
   

Basic Usage

import sys
from PyQt6.QtWidgets import QApplication, QMainWindow, QVBoxLayout, QWidget
from PyQt6.QtCore import QTimer

# Import the widget from the installed package
from pyqt_no_signal_widget import NoSignalWidget

app = QApplication(sys.argv)
window = QMainWindow()
central_widget = QWidget()
layout = QVBoxLayout(central_widget)

# Create the widget
no_signal = NoSignalWidget(
    initial_text="LOADING...",
    initial_colors={'--text-color': 'lime', '--red': 'orange'}, # Use names or CSS values
    start_active=True # Start animation immediately after load
)

layout.addWidget(no_signal)
window.setCentralWidget(central_widget)
window.setWindowTitle("Basic No Signal Widget")
window.setGeometry(200, 200, 600, 400)
window.show()

# Example interaction after widget loads
def on_load():
    print("Widget loaded, stopping in 2s")
    QTimer.singleShot(2000, no_signal.stop)
    QTimer.singleShot(4000, lambda: no_signal.setText("STOPPED!"))
    QTimer.singleShot(6000, no_signal.start)
    QTimer.singleShot(8000, lambda: no_signal.setColors({'--text-color': 'white'}))

no_signal.loadFinished.connect(on_load)

sys.exit(app.exec())

Running the Example Application

1. Ensure the package is installed (preferably using Option 2: pip install -e .).
2. Run the example script from the project root:

   python example/NoSignalExampleWindow.py
   

Dependencies

• PyQt6 >= 6.4.0
• PyQt6-WebEngine >= 6.4.0

Notes

• Rendering Issues: This widget uses QWebEngineView. If you encounter rendering glitches or C++/GPU-related errors in the console (e.g., shared_image_factory, skia_output_surface_impl_on_gpu), it might be related to graphics drivers or hardware acceleration compatibility. As a workaround, try disabling GPU acceleration by setting the environment variable QTWEBENGINE_CHROMIUM_FLAGS to --disable-gpu before running your application.
  • PowerShell: $env:QTWEBENGINE_CHROMIUM_FLAGS="--disable-gpu"
  • cmd.exe: set QTWEBENGINE_CHROMIUM_FLAGS=--disable-gpu
  • Bash/Zsh: export QTWEBENGINE_CHROMIUM_FLAGS="--disable-gpu"
• Customization: Explore the NoSignalWidget class methods (setText, setColors, start, stop) and the PREDEFINED_COLORS and DEFAULT_COLORS dictionaries within no_signal_widget.py for customization options.

License

(Specify your chosen license here, e.g., MIT License)

Files

• PyQTNoSignalAnimation.py: The source code for the NoSignalWidget class.
• NoSignalExampleWindow.py: A comprehensive example application showcasing widget features.
• requirements-widget.txt: Dependencies needed to use the widget as a library.
• requirements-example.txt: Dependencies needed to run the example application.
• pyproject.toml: Configuration file for building the Python package.
• build_package.py: Helper script to build the installable package (.whl, .tar.gz).
• README.md: This documentation file.
• LICENSE (Optional): Add your chosen license file (e.g., MIT).

Widget Usage (NoSignalWidget)

Installation

Option 1: From Source (using the build script)

1. Navigate to the PyQtNoSignalWidget directory in your terminal.
2. Run the build script: python build_package.py
3. Install the generated wheel file: pip install dist/*.whl

Option 2: Directly (if not packaging)

Ensure PyQTNoSignalAnimation.py is in your Python path or the same directory as your application script.

Basic Example

import sys
from PyQt6.QtWidgets import QApplication, QMainWindow, QVBoxLayout, QWidget
from PyQt6.QtCore import QTimer

# Assuming the widget is installed or PyQTNoSignalAnimation.py is accessible
from PyQTNoSignalAnimation import NoSignalWidget

app = QApplication(sys.argv)
window = QMainWindow()
central_widget = QWidget()
layout = QVBoxLayout(central_widget)

# Create the widget
no_signal = NoSignalWidget(
    initial_text="LOADING...",
    initial_colors={'--text-color': 'lime', '--red': 'orange'}, # Use names or CSS values
    start_active=True # Start animation immediately after load
)

layout.addWidget(no_signal)
window.setCentralWidget(central_widget)
window.setWindowTitle("Basic No Signal Widget")
window.setGeometry(200, 200, 600, 400)
window.show()

# Example interaction after widget loads
def on_load():
    print("Widget loaded, stopping in 2s")
    QTimer.singleShot(2000, no_signal.stop)
    QTimer.singleShot(4000, lambda: no_signal.setText("STOPPED!"))
    QTimer.singleShot(6000, no_signal.start)
    QTimer.singleShot(8000, lambda: no_signal.setColors({'--text-color': 'white'}))

no_signal.loadFinished.connect(on_load)

sys.exit(app.exec())