startype23 1.1.3

A CLI tool that analyzes a directory and displays a colourful chart of file type distribution.

StarType23

A CLI tool that walks a directory, counts files by extension, and renders a colourful file-type distribution chart in the terminal.

Features

• Scans recursively and groups files by extension (count and disk size).
• Renders a stacked proportion bar + a table with coloured mini bars.
• Two modes: by count (startype23) or by size (startype23 --size).
• Built-in lookup table of ~500 extensions with file-type category and one-line description (--explain .py).
• Column visibility toggles: --filetype, --count, --percentage, --distribution.
• Skips .git, .venv, node_modules, __pycache__, and similar by default.
• Flat-design pastel colour palette (no neon).

Installation

uv tool install startype23
# or via pip:
pip install startype23

After installation, both startype23 and st23 are available globally.

Usage

startype23 (or st23)                    scan current directory
startype23 --size                       scan by disk size
startype23 --path /some/dir             scan a specific directory
startype23 --include-hidden             include dotfiles
startype23 --explain .py                look up an extension
startype23 --explain py                 leading dot is optional
startype23 --exclude build              skip extra directories
startype23 --count --percentage         show only selected columns

Flag	Description
--path	Directory to scan (default: .)
--exclude / -x	Extra directory names to skip (repeatable)
--include-hidden	Include dotfiles in the scan
--no-include-hidden	Exclude dotfiles (default)
--explain / -e	Look up an extension and show its description
--size / -s	Size distribution instead of count
--filetype / -ft	Show the File Type column
--count / -c	Show the Count column
--percentage / -p	Show the Percentage column
--distribution / -d	Show the Distribution bar column

When no column flags are given, all columns show. When one or more are given, only those (plus Extension) are shown.

Tools used to build this project

• Python 3.10+ -- language runtime.
• uv -- package and project manager (install, build, publish).
• click -- CLI framework (arguments, options, help).
• rich -- terminal styling (tables, colours, text formatting).
• hatchling -- build backend (PEP 517).
• Wikipedia's List of filename extensions -- source for the ~500-entry extension lookup table.