--- title: SkyWalker TUI description: Interactive terminal dashboard for spectrum analysis, transponder scanning, signal monitoring, L-band analysis, and carrier tracking. --- import { Tabs, TabItem, Steps, Aside, Badge } from '@astrojs/starlight/components'; The SkyWalker TUI is a full-screen terminal dashboard built on [Textual](https://textual.textualize.io/) that wraps all five RF operating modes into a single interactive interface. Sidebar navigation, F-key shortcuts, real-time widget updates, and a dark/light theme toggle replace the separate CLI subcommands with a unified experience. ![SkyWalker TUI — Spectrum mode](../../../assets/tui/spectrum.svg) ## Installation The TUI is distributed as the `skywalker-tui` package from the `tui/` directory in the repository. ```bash title="Install with uv" cd tui && uv sync ``` ```bash title="Run with hardware" sudo uv run skywalker-tui ``` ```bash title="Run in demo mode (no hardware)" uv run skywalker-tui --demo ``` ### CLI Flags | Flag | Description | |------|-------------| | `--demo` | Synthetic signal data — no SkyWalker-1 USB device needed | | `--no-splash` | Skip the startup splash screen | | `--verbose, -v` | Verbose USB logging (hardware mode only) | | `MODE` | Initial mode: `spectrum` (default), `scan`, `monitor`, `lband`, `track` | --- ## Keyboard Shortcuts | Key | Action | |-----|--------| | F1 | Spectrum analyzer | | F2 | Transponder scanner | | F3 | Signal monitor | | F4 | L-Band analyzer | | F5 | Carrier tracker | | d | Toggle dark/light theme | | q | Quit | | Ctrl+W | Easter egg | | Esc | Dismiss overlay / skip splash | The sidebar buttons mirror the F-key shortcuts — click or press to switch modes. The active mode is highlighted in the sidebar. --- ## Screens Each mode is a self-contained screen with its own widgets, workers, and layout. Switching modes pauses the previous screen's polling and starts the new one. ### Spectrum Sweep spectrum analyzer across the 950–2150 MHz IF range. Renders a bar chart of signal power at each frequency step with a scrolling waterfall display below. ![Spectrum mode](../../../assets/tui/spectrum.svg) - Bar chart with color-coded signal levels (blue → green → yellow → red) - Waterfall display showing power over time - Peak detection markers above the noise floor - Configurable sweep range, step size, and dwell time ### Scan Three-phase automated transponder search: coarse sweep, fine sweep around peaks, and blind scan at each refined candidate across a range of symbol rates. ![Scan mode](../../../assets/tui/scan.svg) 1. **Coarse sweep** at 10 MHz steps to identify candidate carriers 2. **Fine sweep** at 2 MHz steps around each detected peak 3. **Blind scan** at each refined peak, trying symbol rates from min to max - Progress indicator for each phase - Results table with frequency, symbol rate, and lock status - Supports Ku-band, C-band, and custom LO configurations ### Monitor Real-time signal strength display for hands-free dish alignment. Tunes to a single frequency and polls continuously with visual feedback. ![Monitor mode](../../../assets/tui/monitor.svg) - Signal gauge with lock/unlock status indicator - Sparkline history of recent signal strength samples - SNR and AGC readouts - Designed for dish alignment — visual feedback without needing to read numbers ### L-Band Direct RF input analysis in the 950–2150 MHz range with LNB power disabled. Annotates known L-band frequency allocations. ![L-Band mode](../../../assets/tui/lband.svg) - Same sweep engine as Spectrum mode, but with `lnb_lo=0` and LNB voltage off - Frequency allocation overlays for Amateur 23cm, GNSS, Inmarsat, Iridium, MetSat - Detects carrier presence regardless of modulation compatibility ### Track Carrier/beacon tracker with timestamped logging. Tracks a single frequency and detects lock/unlock transitions over time. ![Track mode](../../../assets/tui/track.svg) - Radar scope display showing signal history - Sparkline for signal power trend - Event log with timestamped lock/unlock transitions - Frequency drift detection --- ## Easter Eggs ### Dark Side Toggle Press d to toggle between dark and light themes. Switching to dark mode triggers a notification: > *"Welcome to the Dark Side."* > — The Force is strong with this one ![Dark Side notification](../../../assets/tui/dark-mode.svg) Switching back to light mode: > *"The Force awakens."* > — A New Hope ### Star Wars Press Ctrl+W to open the Star Wars overlay. It attempts to connect to `towel.blinkenlights.nl:23` for the classic ASCII Star Wars telnet animation. If the connection fails (port 23 is blocked on many networks), a built-in opening crawl plays instead — complete with a SkyWalker-1 themed storyline and Star Destroyer ASCII art. ![Star Wars easter egg](../../../assets/tui/starwars.svg) Press Esc to close the overlay and return to the main dashboard. ### Kitty Cat When running inside the [Kitty terminal](https://sw.kovidgoyal.net/kitty/), the splash screen adds a subtle 🐱 to the title bar. A small nod to the terminal that made it all possible. --- ## Splash Screen On startup, the TUI displays a randomly selected piece of ASCII art from the [16colo.rs / Mistigris](https://16colo.rs/) archives — pre-baked as ANSI half-block art for instant rendering. The splash auto-dismisses after 5 seconds or on any keypress. ![Splash screen](../../../assets/tui/splash.svg) Use `--no-splash` to skip it. --- ## See Also - [SkyWalker RF Tool](/tools/skywalker/) — CLI version of the same 5 modes (text-only output, scriptable) - [Spectrum Analysis](/tools/spectrum-analysis/) — practical how-to guides for each operating mode - [Signal Monitoring](/bcm4500/signal-monitoring/) — SIGNAL_MONITOR register protocol and data format - [Tuning Tool](/tools/tuning/) — primary tuning, LNB control, and transport stream capture - [RF Coverage](/hardware/rf-coverage/) — frequency coverage and antenna considerations