Termshop, an image editor in a terminal

I’ve made a new prototype for the Design Research Playground. Termshop is an image editor that runs in a terminal. Why not? It was inspired by Dr Dan Richards and his quest to live as much of his digital life as possible in the terminal.

The question was whether you could make something with the core functionality of Photoshop that runs inside a terminal window. The answer is sort of, yes. It’s a Python script that recreates lots of what you’d find in a classic image editor, including layers, filters, paint brushes and erasers, plus a Glitch filter for good measure. It’s designed to live in a terminal and be driven by the keyboard, but there’s a browser version so anyone can have a go.

Try Termshop here.

Written by

Dr Joseph Lindley

Joe leads Design Research Works and is a Senior Research Fellow at Lancaster University. He is passionate about the value of Design Research, in particular in applying that value to the challenges associated with emerging technologies, rapid societal change, and living sustainably. Probably best described as a 'generalist' his research practice usually involves material engagements with possible futures.