Let's talk CLI/TUI and Developer Workflows!

I’m looking to refresh my local toolkit and I’m curious: what are the absolute "must-have" CLI or TUI programs in your current rotation?

Whether it's a specialized utility for a specific language, a terminal-based interface for a common service, or a workflow-changing alias, I want to hear about it. I’m especially interested in tools that prioritize keyboard-driven navigation and accessibility.

My Current Favorites:

To get the ball rolling, here are a few tools I’ve been leaning on lately:

  • uv — Fast, reliable Python package and project management.
  • fzf & ripgrep — The classic duo for fuzzy finding and searching.
  • tmux — For session management and persistent terminal workspaces.
  • jq / yq — Essential for wrangling JSON and YAML without leaving the prompt.

What about you?

  1. What is one tool you've discovered recently that you can't live without?
  2. Are there any TUI-based clients for web services (like Mastodon, GitHub, or RSS) that you recommend?
  3. Do you have a favorite "hidden gem" script or small utility?

Mentions & Groups

@programming
@linux @terminal_u_i@lemmy.ml @selfhosted

Hashtags

#CLI #TUI #Terminal #OpenSource #FOSS #Programming #DevTools #Linux #SysAdmin #Workflow #Python #Backend #ArchLinux #KeyboardDriven #Accessibility #SoftwareDevelopment #TechTalk

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[–] 13 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 child)

I’m on my phone, but here’s what I’m using off the top of my head

Helix editor

Yazi - file browser

Aichat

Juju - Jutusu Scm

Ec - conflict resolver

Mergiraf - ast aware conflict resolver

Jiq - jq tui

Radicle - self hosted code forge

Bat - better cat

Fish shell

Nushell

Sqlit - db browser

Zoxide - directory changer

Scooter - find/replace

Mole - Mac cleaner

Devenv - per project dependencies and scripts

Lix - nix client ( largest package manager, great for testing tools too)

Home-manager

Television - fuzzy finder with a nixpkgs plugin

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