CLChat

A terminal-based chat client that connects to the Social App backend. Chat in public rooms and private conversations directly from your terminal.

Web App: netcify.netlify.app

Download

Standalone (no Node.js required)

Download clchat.exe

Just run it from anywhere.

Install globally via npm

npm install -g clchat
clchat

After a single install, run clchat from any directory.

Features

• Register & Login — create an account with username, email, password, age, and gender. Email verification supported.
• Public Rooms — browse available rooms, see unread message counts, join conversations.
• Private Messaging — send direct messages to any user with online/offline status indicators.
• Real-time Chat — messages delivered instantly via WebSocket.
• Typing Indicators — see when someone is typing a reply.
• User Search — find users by username.
• Session Persistence — auto-login on restart, no need to re-enter credentials.
• 6 Themes — default, matrix, retro, ocean, solarized, dracula. Switch with /theme <name>.
• Responsive Layout — adapts to your terminal size.

Install (from source)

npm install
npm start

Dev mode (auto-restart on changes):

npm run dev

Build Executable

npm run build:exe

Produces dist/clchat.exe — a single portable file.

Commands

| Command | Description | |---------|-------------| | /help | Show help | | /theme <name> | Change theme (matrix, retro, ocean, solarized, dracula) | | /rooms | Refresh rooms list | | /clear | Clear chat messages | | /back | Return to lobby | | /quit | Exit |

Keyboard Shortcuts

| Key | Action | |-----|--------| | Tab | Switch between panels | | Enter | Select / Send message | | Escape | Go back to lobby | | PageUp / PageDown | Scroll messages | | F1 | Show help | | F5 | Refresh rooms | | Ctrl+C | Exit |

Requirements

• Node.js >= 18.0.0 (not required for the standalone exe)
• Terminal with Unicode support

Data

Session and config are stored in ~/.social-cli/.

License

MIT