@bettertui/core

Website: bettertui.dev | Docs: bettertui.dev/docs | npm: npmjs.com/package/@bettertui/core

Framework-agnostic command protocol, tree manipulation, reconciler wrapper, and runtime. Framework package for vanilla / native TypeScript. No React dependency.

Overview

@bettertui/core is the public entry point for building terminal UIs without React. It provides:

• Command protocol — typed Command union and CommandBuffer for batching
• Reconciler — createReconciler(buffer) wraps tree ops with command emission
• Runtime — CommandRuntime owns the buffer, frame loop, and subscriber dispatch
• Native bridge — loads bettertui_engine.node addon, exposes engine factories
• DevTools — in-core debug tooling (createDevTools, debug overlay)
• Testing utilities — createTestRenderer, createMockKeys, mock streams, spies
• Keymap — framework-agnostic input binding engine
• Widgets — TypeScript widget option types
• Validation — validate, warnIfInvalid, layout/style validation

Installation

npm install @bettertui/core

Requires building the native Rust addon for native bridge features:

pnpm --filter @bettertui/core build:native

Quick start

import { createEngine, detectCapabilities, CliRenderer } from "@bettertui/core";

const engine = createEngine();
const caps = detectCapabilities();

Re-exports

Re-exports all types from @bettertui/shared (internal — don't install separately).

Features

• Framework-agnostic (no React dependency)
• Native Rust engine via napi-rs FFI
• Command-batched rendering (one FFI call per frame)
• In-core DevTools with debug overlay
• Testing utilities for headless rendering
• Keymap with layered bindings, chord sequences, and modes

Related Documentation

• Website
• npm package
• Rust engine crate (docs.rs)
• GitHub repository
• Architecture overview
• API reference
• Guides