This page provides information on various advanced Python console-based frameworks, enabling developers to create interactive and user-friendly command-line applications. By exploring the features, capabilities, and use cases of these tools, developers can enhance their projects and take full advantage of the powerful potential of Python in a console environment.
The following topics are covered within the scope of this document:
Each section will provide an overview of the framework, discuss its key features, and share valuable tips and examples to help you get started on your console-based development journey.
Pygame is a versatile, open-source library for game development in Python. Although primarily known for graphical games, Pygame also supports creating console-based applications with advanced UI features. It’s built on top of the Simple DirectMedia Layer (SDL) and offers extensive control over input handling, graphics, and audio.
In my exploration of Pygame I discovered that while it seems to be an awesome library for creating games, it’s not focused on creating widgets for basic user interfaces. As such, it doesn’t meet my needs. I’m not a game developer. I’m a backend, front-end and middleware developer. Next!!!!
Key features of Pygame include:
While Pygame might be more complex than other console-based frameworks due to its extensive features, it offers immense flexibility and potential for those willing to invest the time in learning its ins and outs.
Npyscreen is a python widget library and application framework for programming terminal or console applications. It is built on top of ncurses, which is part of the standard library.
I was unable to install this software. pip install npyscreen failed with a the error TypeError: canonicalize_version() got an unexpected keyword argument ‘strip_trailing_zero’
After spending some time evaluating Asciimatics I found the lack of concrete documentation to be failing. I also found the overall architecture to be confusing, unclear, and not supportive of object oriented design. I’ve ruled it out and am moving on to the next library for console based UI development.
Urwid is less of a library for building UIs and more of a construction set. It falls between a full-blown UI library like tkinter and curses. So far, I’m liking it. I believe it will meet my requirements for console based, Python UI development.