dotfiles/docs/tools/television.mdx

---
title: television
description: tv config symlinked from the repo, a transparent cyberdream theme, and the custom cables behind gho, pj, and ctrl-e in fish, zsh, and bash.
---

[television](https://github.com/alexpasmantier/television) (`tv`) is a fuzzy picker built on "cables": TOML files that define a source command, a preview, and actions. Every shell picker in the repo runs on a tv cable, with the same keys in fish, zsh, and bash.

| | |
| --- | --- |
| Source | `television/config.toml`, `television/cable/*.toml`, `television/themes/cyberdream-transparent.toml` |
| Link | `dot_config/symlink_television.tmpl` → `~/.config/television` is a symlink to `{{ .chezmoi.sourceDir }}/television` |
| Target | `~/.config/television/` |
| Ignore | `.chezmoiignore.tmpl` lists `television`, so it is not copied to `~/television` |
| Install | Not listed in `.chezmoidata/packages.yaml`; install separately |

The whole directory is a symlink into the source tree, so edits apply without `chezmoi apply`. `cable/` holds tv's stock cables plus the repo's own and overridden ones.

## config.toml

The UI is minimal: no borders, a hidden status bar, and padding in place of frames.

| Key | Value |
| --- | --- |
| `default_channel` | `files` |
| `ui.theme` | `cyberdream-transparent` |
| `ui.input_bar` | position `top`, prompt `❯`, `border_type = "none"`, padding left 1, right 1, bottom 1 |
| `ui.status_bar.hidden` | `true` (<kbd>f12</kbd> toggles it) |
| `ui.results_panel` | `border_type = "none"`, padding left 1, right 1 |
| `ui.preview_panel` | `size = 50`, `scrollbar = false`, `border_type = "none"`, padding left 2, right 1 |
| `ui.help_panel.hidden` | `true` |

tv 0.15 has no config key for inline mode (`--inline` and `--height` are CLI-only), so every call site passes `--inline`: `gho` (`tv ghq-repos --inline`), `pj` (`tv pj --inline …`), <kbd>ctrl-e</kbd> (`tv git-files --inline`), and bash <kbd>ctrl-t</kbd> (`tv --autocomplete-prompt … --inline`). Actions that re-exec tv pass it too: `files` (`tv files .. --inline`), `dirs` (`tv dirs .. --inline`), and `channels` (`tv {} --inline`). `tv --inline` opens on the line below the prompt and leaves the cursor there on exit; the shell key bindings move the prompt back ([fish](/shell/fish#key-bindings), [bash and zsh](/shell/bash-zsh)).

A channel that sets its own `[ui.preview_panel]` replaces the whole table with tv's defaults (rounded border, scrollbar). The stock cables that override it (`alias`, `cargo-commands`, `crontab`, `env`, `fonts`, `gh-issues`, `journal`, `man-pages`, `npm-scripts`, `opencode-sessions`, `ports`, `tea-issues`, `tea-prs`, `text`, `todo-comments`) therefore repeat `border_type = "none"`, `scrollbar = false`, and padding left 2, right 1.

Global keys added on top of the defaults:

| Key | Action |
| --- | --- |
| <kbd>ctrl-e</kbd> | `actions:edit`: the channel's `edit` action |
| <kbd>ctrl-h</kbd> | `actions:goto_parent_dir`; the help panel loses <kbd>ctrl-h</kbd> |
| <kbd>end</kbd> | `go_to_input_end` (unchanged) |

## Theme

`themes/cyberdream-transparent.toml` is a separate file because tv 0.15's builtin `cyberdream` shadows a user theme of the same name and paints an opaque `#16181a` background. This theme omits `background`, so kitty's translucent background shows through (tv 0.15 rejects `background = 'none'`).

| Key | Color |
| --- | --- |
| `border_fg` | `#3c4048` |
| `text_fg`, `input_text_fg`, `result_value_fg` | `#ffffff` |
| `dimmed_text_fg` | `#7b8496` |
| `result_name_fg` | `#5ea1ff` |
| `result_line_number_fg` | `#f1ff5e` |
| `match_fg` | `#5ef1ff` |
| `selection_fg` / `selection_bg` | `#5eff6c` on `#3c4048` |
| `preview_title_fg` | `#ffaecf` |
| `result_count_fg` | `#ffbd5e` |
| `channel_mode_bg` | `#5ef1ff` on `#16181a` |
| `remote_control_mode_bg` | `#5eff6c` on `#16181a` |
| `action_picker_mode_bg` | `#bd5eff` on `#16181a` |

## Sorting

Every custom cable pipes its source through [`mtime-sort`](/shell/scripts#mtime-sort), which orders lines newest-first by the mtime of the path in the line's last tab-separated field (`--repo` stats `<path>/.git/index` first). tv then ranks match quality and frecency on top of that order. All custom cables set `shell = "bash"`, because `$SHELL` is fish.

## Custom cables

| Cable | File | Opened by |
| --- | --- | --- |
| [`ghq-repos`](#ghq-repos) | `cable/ghq-repos.toml` | <kbd>ctrl-o</kbd> (`gho`) |
| [`git-files`](#git-files) | `cable/git-files.toml` | <kbd>ctrl-e</kbd> |
| [`pj`](#pj) | `cable/pj.toml` | <kbd>ctrl-p</kbd>, <kbd>down</kbd> on an empty prompt (`pj`) |
| [`files`](#files) | `cable/files.toml` | `tv`, <kbd>ctrl-t</kbd> autocomplete |

The keys are bound in fish (`fish_user_key_bindings.fish`), zsh (`keybinds.zsh`), and bash (`keybinds.bash`). See [fish](/shell/fish#key-bindings) and [bash and zsh](/shell/bash-zsh).

### ghq-repos

Entries are `name<TAB>path`: tv shows and matches the name and prints the path. <kbd>ctrl-s</kbd> cycles between the two sources.

| Source | Entries | Sort |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Repos | `ghq list` under `ghq root`, plus the chezmoi source (`~/.local/share/chezmoi`) listed as `github.com/prdlk/dotfiles` | `mtime-sort --repo` |
| Vaults | Every directory under `~/Documents/Obsidian` (depth 3) that contains `.obsidian`, named relative to that directory | `mtime-sort` |

**Preview.** `onefetch --no-art` for git directories, otherwise `eza --tree --level 2` (falling back to `ls -la`).

| Key | Action |
| --- | --- |
| <kbd>enter</kbd> | Print the path. The `gho` function cds into it, clears, and runs `onefetch` in git repos |
| <kbd>ctrl-e</kbd> | `edit`: `cd <path> && nvim .` on `/dev/tty` |
| <kbd>ctrl-b</kbd> | `browse`: `cd <path> && gop` in fork mode, so tv stays open ([gop](/shell/scripts#gop)) |

**Needs:** `ghq`, `fd`, `onefetch`, `mtime-sort`.

### git-files

| Source | Entries |
| --- | --- |
| Tracked | `git ls-files` of the whole repo (from the toplevel), or `fd -t f` outside a repo |
| All | `fd -t f -H -E .git` |

Both are sorted with `mtime-sort`. The preview is `bat -n` with `BAT_THEME=ansi`. <kbd>enter</kbd> runs `edit`: `nvim {}` on `/dev/tty`.

**Needs:** `git`, `fd`, `bat`, `mtime-sort`.

### pj

Source `pj --list`; tv shows the display column. The preview runs `pj --preview` in the global 50% panel, and <kbd>enter</kbd> runs `pj --run`. Running `pj` scans the project and opens this cable with its own records. See [pj](/shell/scripts#pj).

**Needs:** `pj`, `mtime-sort`.

### files

Overrides tv's stock `files` cable. Sources `Default` (`fd -t f`) and `Hidden` (`fd -t f -H`), both piped through `mtime-sort`. The `edit` action opens the selection in `nvim` on `/dev/tty`, so it also works from <kbd>ctrl-t</kbd>, where the shell captures tv's stdout.

**Needs:** `fd`, `bat`, `mtime-sort`.