Really neat! Some feedback: it seems Zenta looks at $TERM to determine whether or not to use "simple" mode, and it seems it might be overly conservative.
I'm a tmux user, and in tmux, $TERM must be "screen-256color" or "tmux-256color". With $TERM set to either of those, zenta uses simple mode.
I can get it to use "full" mode by running it as "TERM=xterm-256color zenta" within tmux and it works fine, but this shouldn't be necessary - I haven't run into any other TUI apps that don't work properly in tmux.
Edit: I just noticed in the README that it seems to be intentional that it uses simple mode in tmux, but I'm not sure why that should be the case, since it clearly works fine. Maybe you could use simple mode for $TERM=screen and normal mode for $TERM=tmux?
On a different note, it seems like it would be more immersive if it took over the entire terminal window while running. Maybe you've already considered that and decided not to.
Thank you both for this feedback!
You're right. I made a mistake by not testing thoroughly enough. I was being overly conservative based on assumptions rather than actual testing.
Your detailed feedback about $TERM values and real-world tmux usage is exactly what I needed. I should have tested more environments before making assumptions about terminal compatibility.
Thanks for keeping me honest and helping improve Zenta!
I was looking for an app/cli that lets me adjust breathing patterns on the fly (think of extending the hold duration for 0.5s and a while after for instance extend the outbreathe duration 1s, while having my eyes closed using my bluetooth controller). Finding something like this on any app store with its thousands of bloated apps seems quite hopeless and it's a relatively simple feature. Can I hope for your kindness to implement something like that?
(I'm using 8bitdo controller and mapping of buttons is possible via keyd, so no need for adding configurations, any key combo would do).
I'm also happy for anyone else pointing me to a solution.
Keep on doing good!
(Happy to follow your repo if I can hope for this feature. No worries, I'm a patient man.)
Honestly, I spent a whole day trying it, but it doesn't work for me. Zenta's way is simple: notice you're stuck in thoughts, return to your breath, then continue working with awareness.
Thank you again to everyone who shared feedback here — it helped a lot.
I took some time to reflect and wrote about why I built Zenta, and how mindfulness became part of my work: https://hieptran.me/posts/zenta/
Just wanted to share this in case it resonates with anyone else.
Looks great, though I must say I am not a huge fan of the yoga-namaste-style theme. Reminds me of spas where the "relaxing" music is stock ambient crap.
If I had more time, I'd theme it with a more rock n roll approach.
That's amazing and I would love seeing more and more projects directed at engineers & mindfulness. Sometimes I notice after a few hours of work that i'm not breathing / have super shallow breath. That's a cool beginning into incorporating tools into the workflow. Love it!
Any plans for additional commands? I was thinking that a 'focus' command with a short to-do list (perhaps paired with some Stoic quips) could be useful in keeping one on track over the course of the day.
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I'm a tmux user, and in tmux, $TERM must be "screen-256color" or "tmux-256color". With $TERM set to either of those, zenta uses simple mode.
I can get it to use "full" mode by running it as "TERM=xterm-256color zenta" within tmux and it works fine, but this shouldn't be necessary - I haven't run into any other TUI apps that don't work properly in tmux.
Edit: I just noticed in the README that it seems to be intentional that it uses simple mode in tmux, but I'm not sure why that should be the case, since it clearly works fine. Maybe you could use simple mode for $TERM=screen and normal mode for $TERM=tmux?
On a different note, it seems like it would be more immersive if it took over the entire terminal window while running. Maybe you've already considered that and decided not to.
Anyway, thanks again! I love this.
But yeah, I agree – I think this might be rather too conservative.
I was looking for an app/cli that lets me adjust breathing patterns on the fly (think of extending the hold duration for 0.5s and a while after for instance extend the outbreathe duration 1s, while having my eyes closed using my bluetooth controller). Finding something like this on any app store with its thousands of bloated apps seems quite hopeless and it's a relatively simple feature. Can I hope for your kindness to implement something like that?
(I'm using 8bitdo controller and mapping of buttons is possible via keyd, so no need for adding configurations, any key combo would do).
I'm also happy for anyone else pointing me to a solution.
Keep on doing good!
(Happy to follow your repo if I can hope for this feature. No worries, I'm a patient man.)
If I had more time, I'd theme it with a more rock n roll approach.