robust-input 1.0.1

A very comprehensive terminal input module with no external dependencies

Robust Input Module

A comprehensive and robust input routine for command-line applications in Python. This module provides a highly configurable input function with advanced terminal control, validation, and user experience features.

Features

Core Input Capabilities

• Real-time Character Input: Character-by-character processing with immediate feedback
• Cursor Movement: Full left/right arrow key support for in-place editing
• Backspace Support: Delete characters with proper cursor positioning
• Default Values: Built-in default value handling with validation
• Cross-platform: Works in both terminal and non-terminal environments

Advanced Validation System

• Length Validation: Minimum and maximum length constraints
• Type Validation: Automatic casting to int, float, bool, str, and custom types
• Pattern Validation: Regular expression pattern matching
• Choice Validation: Selection from predefined options
• Custom Validators: User-defined validation functions
• Composite Validation: Multiple validation layers applied sequentially

Professional User Experience

• Smart Error Display: Errors appear below input line without scrolling
• Persistent Error Messages: Errors stay visible until next validation
• Instant Feedback: No artificial delays - immediate validation response
• Screen Real Estate Reuse: Cursor repositioning prevents screen clutter
• Clean Terminal Management: Proper terminal state restoration

Security & Styling

• Password Masking: Secure input with asterisk masking
• ANSI Styling: Full color and text style support
• Customizable Messages: User-defined prompts and error messages
• Graceful Degradation: Fallback behavior for non-terminal environments

Requirements

• Python 3.6+
• Linux/Unix environment (uses termios and tty modules)
• Standard library only (no external dependencies)

Installation

Simply copy the robust_input.py file to your project directory.

Usage

Basic Examples

import robust_input as ri

# Simple string input
name = ri.get_input(prompt="Enter your name")
print(f"Hello, {name}!")

# Integer input with validation
age = ri.get_input(
    prompt="Enter your age",
    target_type=int,
    min_length=1,
    max_length=3,
    custom_validator=lambda x: 1 <= int(x) <= 120,
    error_message="Age must be between 1 and 120"
)

# String input with length constraints
username = ri.get_input(
    prompt="Choose a username",
    min_length=3,
    max_length=20,
    allow_empty=False,
    error_message="Username must be 3-20 characters"
)

# Choice selection
color = ri.get_input(
    prompt="Select your favorite color",
    choices=["red", "green", "blue", "yellow"],
    default="blue",
    error_message="Please choose from the available colors"
)

Password and Security

import robust_input as ri

# Password input with masking
password = ri.get_password(
    prompt="Enter your password",
    min_length=8,
    pattern=r'^(?=.*[A-Za-z])(?=.*\d)[A-Za-z\d]{8,}$',
    error_message="Password must be at least 8 characters with letters and numbers"
)

# Secure input with custom validation
def strong_password(pwd: str) -> bool:
    return (len(pwd) >= 8 and 
            any(c.isupper() for c in pwd) and 
            any(c.islower() for c in pwd) and 
            any(c.isdigit() for c in pwd))

secure_pwd = ri.get_input(
    prompt="Create a strong password",
    is_password=True,
    custom_validator=strong_password,
    error_message="Password must have uppercase, lowercase, and numbers"
)

Advanced Validation

import robust_input as ri
import re

# Email validation
email = ri.get_input(
    prompt="Enter your email",
    pattern=r'^[a-zA-Z0-9._%+-]+@[a-zA-Z0-9.-]+\.[a-zA-Z]{2,}$',
    error_message="Please enter a valid email address"
)

# Custom validation function
def is_prime(value: str) -> bool:
    try:
        n = int(value)
        if n < 2:
            return False
        for i in range(2, int(n**0.5) + 1):
            if n % i == 0:
                return False
        return True
    except ValueError:
        return False

prime_number = ri.get_input(
    prompt="Enter a prime number",
    target_type=int,
    custom_validator=is_prime,
    error_message="Please enter a prime number"
)

# Multiple validation layers
user_id = ri.get_input(
    prompt="Enter user ID",
    target_type=int,
    min_length=1,
    max_length=10,
    custom_validator=lambda x: int(x) > 0,
    error_message="User ID must be a positive integer"
)

Styling and Appearance

import robust_input as ri

# Styled prompts and errors
styled_input = ri.get_input(
    prompt="Enter something special",
    prompt_style=[ri.InputStyle.BLUE, ri.InputStyle.BOLD],
    input_style=[ri.InputStyle.CYAN],
    error_style=[ri.InputStyle.RED, ri.InputStyle.BOLD],
    error_message="❌ Invalid input! Please try again."
)

# Colorful interactive menu
menu_choice = ri.get_input(
    prompt="🎮 Choose your action",
    choices=["start", "quit", "help"],
    default="start",
    prompt_style=[ri.InputStyle.GREEN, ri.InputStyle.BOLD],
    input_style=[ri.InputStyle.YELLOW],
    error_message="⚠️ Please choose 'start', 'quit', or 'help'"
)

Convenience Functions

import robust_input as ri

# Integer input with range validation
age = ri.get_integer(
    prompt="Enter your age",
    min_value=1,
    max_value=120,
    error_message="Age must be between 1 and 120"
)

# Choice from predefined options
color = ri.get_choice(
    prompt="Select your favorite color",
    choices=["red", "green", "blue", "yellow"],
    default="blue"
)

# IP address validation
ip_address = ri.get_ip_address(
    prompt="Enter server IP",
    default="192.168.1.1"
)

# Password with built-in masking
password = ri.get_password(
    prompt="Enter password",
    min_length=8,
    error_message="Password must be at least 8 characters"
)

Error Handling and User Experience

import robust_input as ri

# The input function handles all error display and cursor positioning
try:
    # This will show errors below the input line, then reposition cursor
    number = ri.get_input(
        prompt="Enter an even number",
        target_type=int,
        custom_validator=lambda x: int(x) % 2 == 0,
        error_message="❌ Must be an even number!",
        allow_empty=False
    )
    print(f"✅ You entered: {number}")
    
except KeyboardInterrupt:
    print("\n👋 Goodbye!")
except Exception as e:
    print(f"❌ An error occurred: {e}")

API Reference

Main Function

get_input(prompt, **kwargs) -> Any

The primary function for collecting user input with comprehensive validation and styling.

Parameters:

• prompt (str): The prompt text to display to the user
• default (Optional[str]): Default value if user presses Enter without input
• min_length (Optional[int]): Minimum required length for input
• max_length (Optional[int]): Maximum allowed length for input
• allow_empty (bool): Whether to allow empty input (default: True)
• target_type (Type): Type to cast the input to (default: str)
• pattern (Optional[str]): Regular expression pattern for validation
• choices (Optional[List[str]]): List of allowed input values
• is_password (bool): Whether to mask input with asterisks (default: False)
• prompt_style (Optional[List[str]]): ANSI styles for the prompt
• input_style (Optional[List[str]]): ANSI styles for user input
• error_message (Optional[str]): Custom error message for validation failures
• error_style (Optional[List[str]]): ANSI styles for error messages
• custom_validator (Optional[Callable[[str], bool]]): Custom validation function

Returns: The validated and type-cast input value

Raises:

• ValueError: When validation fails (including default values)
• KeyboardInterrupt: When user presses Ctrl+C

Convenience Functions

get_password(prompt, **kwargs) -> str

Collects password input with asterisk masking.

get_integer(prompt, min_value=None, max_value=None, **kwargs) -> int

Collects integer input with optional range validation.

get_choice(prompt, choices, **kwargs) -> str

Collects input from a predefined list of choices.

get_ip_address(prompt, **kwargs) -> str

Collects and validates IPv4 address input.

Styling Classes

InputStyle

Provides ANSI color codes and text styles:

# Colors
InputStyle.BLACK, InputStyle.RED, InputStyle.GREEN, InputStyle.YELLOW
InputStyle.BLUE, InputStyle.MAGENTA, InputStyle.CYAN, InputStyle.WHITE

# Text Styles
InputStyle.BOLD, InputStyle.UNDERLINE, InputStyle.RESET

InputValidator

Static methods for validation:

• validate_length(value, min_len, max_len) -> bool
• validate_type(value, target_type) -> bool
• validate_pattern(value, pattern) -> bool
• validate_ip_address(value) -> bool
• validate_in_choices(value, choices) -> bool

Architecture

The module uses a clean architecture with separated concerns:

• InputHandler: Manages terminal interaction and character processing
• InputConfig: Encapsulates all configuration parameters
• InputValidator: Handles all validation logic
• InputStyle: Provides styling capabilities

User Experience Features

Smart Error Display

• Errors appear below the input line
• Error messages persist until next validation
• No screen scrolling or clutter
• Instant feedback without delays

Terminal Control

• Character-by-character input processing
• Full cursor movement support (left/right arrows)
• Proper backspace handling
• Terminal state restoration

Cross-Platform Support

• Terminal mode: Full features with ANSI escape sequences
• Non-terminal mode: Graceful fallback using standard input()
• Automatic detection: Seamlessly switches between modes

Complete Examples

See the examples/ directory for comprehensive usage demonstrations.

Quick Example

#!/usr/bin/env python3
"""Quick example demonstrating robust_input features."""

import robust_input as ri

def main():
    # Basic input with validation
    name = ri.get_input(
        prompt="Enter your name",
        min_length=2,
        max_length=50,
        error_message="Name must be 2-50 characters"
    )
    
    # Integer input with range validation
    age = ri.get_integer(
        prompt="Enter your age",
        min_value=13,
        max_value=120,
        error_message="Age must be between 13 and 120"
    )
    
    # Choice selection with styling
    theme = ri.get_choice(
        prompt="Choose theme",
        choices=["light", "dark", "auto"],
        default="auto",
        prompt_style=[ri.InputStyle.CYAN, ri.InputStyle.BOLD]
    )
    
    print(f"\nHello {name} (age {age}), using {theme} theme!")

if __name__ == "__main__":
    try:
        main()
    except KeyboardInterrupt:
        print("\nGoodbye!")

Development

Architecture Highlights

• Low Cognitive Complexity: Refactored from 700% complexity to manageable levels
• Separated Concerns: Each class handles a specific responsibility
• Comprehensive Testing: Extensive validation and error handling
• Professional UX: Terminal-grade user experience

Code Quality

• Type hints throughout
• Comprehensive docstrings
• Clean error handling
• Proper resource management
• Cross-platform compatibility

Documentation

For comprehensive documentation, see the docs/ directory:

• API Reference - Complete function and class documentation
• Developer Guide - Development setup and contribution guide
• Architecture - System design and implementation details
• Testing - Testing strategy and coverage analysis
• Examples - Real-world usage examples

Testing

The library includes a comprehensive test suite with 69% coverage:

# Run tests
make test

# Generate coverage report  
make coverage

# Run tests with verbose output
make test-verbose

Test Coverage Summary:

• 53 tests across all components
• Unit, integration, and mock testing strategies
• Comprehensive validation and error handling tests
• CI/CD integration with GitHub Actions

Development

Development Setup

# Clone repository
git clone <repository-url>
cd robust_input

# Setup environment
python -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate
pip install coverage black isort flake8

# Verify setup
make validate
make test

Development Commands

• make test - Run all tests
• make coverage - Generate coverage report
• make lint - Check code quality
• make format - Auto-format code
• make clean - Clean generated files

Contributing

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch
3. Make changes with tests
4. Ensure all tests pass (make test)
5. Submit a pull request

See Developer Guide for detailed contribution guidelines.

License

This project is open source and available under the MIT License.