pyTermTk/.github/copilot-instructions.md

pyTermTk Copilot Instructions

Project Overview

pyTermTk is a Text-based User Interface (TUI) library for Python inspired by Qt5, GTK, and tkinter APIs. It creates cross-platform terminal applications with rich widgets, layouts, and an event-driven architecture.

Architecture

Core Structure

• libs/pyTermTk/TermTk/ - Main library code organized into logical modules:
  • TTkCore/ - Core functionality (signals, colors, canvas, configuration)
  • TTkWidgets/ - All UI widgets inherit from TTkWidget base class
  • TTkLayouts/ - Layout managers (GridLayout, HBoxLayout, VBoxLayout)
  • TTkGui/ - GUI components (drag & drop, application management)
  • TTkTemplates/ - Mixin classes for event handling (TKeyEvents, TMouseEvents, TDragEvents)

Widget Inheritance Pattern

All widgets follow this pattern:

class TTkMyWidget(TTkWidget):  # Or TTkContainer for composite widgets
    # Class-level styling
    classStyle = {
        'default':  {'color': TTkColor.fg("#dddd88"), 'borderColor': TTkColor.RST},
        'hover':    {'color': TTkColor.fg("#ffffff"), 'borderColor': TTkColor.BOLD},
        'focus':    {'borderColor': TTkColor.fg("#ffff00")},
        'disabled': {'color': TTkColor.fg('#888888')}
    }

    # Signal declarations
    mySignal: pyTTkSignal

    __slots__ = ('_private_vars',)  # Always use slots for performance

    def __init__(self, **kwargs):
        self.mySignal = pyTTkSignal(int)  # Define signals in __init__
        super().__init__(**kwargs|{'size': (w, h)})  # Merge kwargs, set default size

Signal-Slot System (Qt-inspired)

Use type-safe signal-slot patterns:

# Define signals with types
signal = pyTTkSignal(int)
# Define slots with decorators
@pyTTkSlot(int)
def my_slot(value: int):
    pass
# Connect them
signal.connect(my_slot)

Event Handling

Widgets handle events by overriding template methods:

• keyEvent(), mousePressEvent(), paintEvent() - Core events
• focusInEvent(), focusOutEvent() - Focus management
• dropEvent(), dragEnterEvent() - Drag & drop
• Always return True if event is handled, False to propagate

Development Workflows

Testing

• Unit tests: pytest tests/pytest/ (run via Makefile: make test)
• Performance tests: tests/timeit/ - Contains signal/slot benchmarks and optimization tests
• Manual tests: tests/t.*/ - Interactive UI tests
• CI: Tests run on Python 3.9-3.14 with flake8 linting

Build & Deploy

• Local build: pip install -e libs/pyTermTk (uses pip)
• Documentation: make doc (Sphinx-based, outputs to docs/source/_build/html/)
• Apps deployment: Individual apps in apps/ have their own pyproject.toml

Running Examples

• Demo: python demo/demo.py -f
• Designer: pip install -e apps/ttkDesigner ; ttkDesigner
• Individual tests: python tests/t.ui/test.ui.036.datetime.01.py

Project-Specific Patterns

Widget State Management

Many widgets use internal state classes (see datetime_date_form.py):

class _TTkWidgetState:
    __slots__ = ('_data', 'signal_name')
    def __init__(self):
        self.signal_name = pyTTkSignal()

File Organization

• One widget per file in TTkWidgets/
• Use __all__ = ['ClassName'] exports
• Import from TermTk.TTkCore, TermTk.TTkWidgets etc (not relative imports)
• Apps in apps/ are self-contained with pyproject.toml

Color & Theming

Use TTkColor constants and theme system:

TTkColor.fg("#ffffff") + TTkColor.bg("#000044") + TTkColor.BOLD
style = self.currentStyle()  # Get theme-aware colors

Cross-Platform Considerations

• Platform-specific code in TTkCore/drivers/
• Terminal compatibility testing in tests/ansi.images.json
• HTML5 export capabilities via tools/webExporter/

Documentation & Docstrings

Use Sphinx-compatible docstring format with Epytext-style field lists:

def setGeometry(self, x: int, y: int, width: int, height: int):
    ''' Resize and move the widget

    :param x: the horizontal position
    :type x: int
    :param y: the vertical position
    :type y: int
    :param width: the new width
    :type width: int
    :param height: the new height
    :type height: int
    '''

# For class/module docstrings include ASCII art examples:
class TTkButton(TTkWidget):
    ''' TTkButton:

    Border = True
    ::

         ┌────────┐
         │  Text  │
         ╘════════╛

    Demo: `formwidgets.py <https://github.com/ceccopierangiolieugenio/pyTermTk/blob/main/demo/showcase/formwidgets.py>`_
    '''

# For signals, document parameters:
toggled:pyTTkSignal
'''
This signal is emitted whenever the button state changes if checkeable,
i.e., whenever the user checks or unchecks it.

:param checked: True if checked otherwise False
:type checked: bool
'''

Key conventions:

• Use single quotes ''' for docstrings
• Include ASCII art for visual widgets showing borders/layout
• Link to demo files with full GitHub URLs
• Use :py:class: for cross-references to other classes
• Document all parameters with :param name: and :type name:
• Include :return: and :rtype: for non-void methods
• Signal docstrings document emitted parameters, not the signal itself

Apps Ecosystem

The project includes several full applications demonstrating patterns:

• ttkDesigner - Visual UI designer (like Qt Designer)
• ttkode - Code editor with syntax highlighting
• dumbPaintTool - ASCII art editor
• tlogg - Log file viewer

Testing App Integration

Apps use the main library via path manipulation:

sys.path.append(os.path.join(sys.path[0],'../../libs/pyTermTk'))
import TermTk as ttk

Key Integration Points

Layout System

Use Qt-like layout managers:

layout = TTkGridLayout()
layout.addWidget(widget, row, col, rowspan, colspan)
container.setLayout(layout)

Focus & Input Handling

Set focus policy and handle keyboard navigation:

self.setFocusPolicy(TTkK.ClickFocus | TTkK.TabFocus)

When implementing new widgets, study existing patterns in TTkWidgets/ and ensure signal-slot integration follows the established type-safe patterns shown in tests/pytest/test_004_signals_slots.py.