What is it?
What it is
A terminal-based sakura tree animation with procedurally generated blossoms and drifting petals, inspired by cmatrix and cava but enhanced with visual polish.
Why it exists
To provide a visually appealing, low-resource terminal animation that combines procedural growth, dynamic petal movement, and customizable aesthetics for terminal users.
Who should use it
Terminal enthusiasts looking to customize their workspaceUsers of tiling window managers like HyDE or kittyDevelopers wanting a low-CPU aesthetic background/screensaverPeople who enjoy ASCII and Unicode terminal art
Who should avoid it
Users without a terminal emulator that supports 256-color or UnicodeUsers looking for high-performance 3D graphicsUsers who cannot install build tools like make or C compilers
How it works
A quick walkthrough in plain English
How csakura works
Step 1 of 3
You interact with it
Open csakura, send a request, or connect it to your stack.
Features
Advantages
- Low CPU overhead
- Highly customizable via command-line arguments
- Supports transparent terminal backgrounds
- Lightweight C99 implementation
- Cross-platform support (Linux, macOS)
Disadvantages
- Requires specific fonts (Nerd Fonts) for best Unicode visual quality
- Best performance/color support requires 256-color terminal emulators
Installation
cloud
N/A
docker
N/A
native
Arch Linux: sudo pacman -S --needed base-devel ncurses && git clone https://github.com/realstrawhat/csakura.git && cd csakura && makepkg -si OR make && sudo make install. macOS: brew install ncurses && git clone https://github.com/realstrawhat/csakura.git && cd csakura && brew install --HEAD --formula./Formula/csakura.rb OR brew install ncurses && git clone https://github.com/realstrawhat/csakura.git && cd csakura && make && sudo make install. Other Linux: git clone https://github.com/realstrawhat/csakura.git && cd csakura && make && sudo make install.
compose
N/A
FAQ
How do I install csakura on Arch Linux?
Install base-devel and ncurses, then clone the repo and run `makepkg -si` or `make && sudo make install`. Uninstall with `sudo pacman -R csakura` or `sudo make uninstall`.
What are the steps to install csakura on macOS using Homebrew?
First install ncurses via `brew install ncurses`, clone the repository, then either build with `make && sudo make install` or install the formula via `brew install --HEAD --formula ./Formula/csakura.rb`. Uninstall with `brew uninstall csakura` or `sudo make uninstall`.
How can I adjust the animation speed, petal density, and wind strength?
Use command-line options: `-f FPS` (5‑60, default 20) for frames per second, `-p NUM` (1‑10, default 5) for petal density, and `-w NUM` (0‑10, default 1) for wind strength. Example: `csakura -f 12 -p 3` for a low‑CPU chill mode.
How do I change the blossom color palette?
Specify a palette name with `-c NAME` (default: sakura) or press `c`/`C` while running to cycle forward/backward through the 15 palettes: sakura, rose, blush, magenta, peach, coral, sunset, gold, lavender, violet, sky, mint, matcha, white, ink.
What should I do if the Unicode blossoms are not displaying correctly?
Ensure you are using a 256‑color terminal and a font that supports the blossom glyphs (most Nerd Fonts work). If not, launch with the `-a` flag to fall back to ASCII glyphs only.
How can I regrow the tree or quit the program while it's running?
Press `r` to regrow the tree procedurally. To quit, press `q` or the Escape key.
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