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0 pointsratorx1y ago0 comments

You can delegate the choice to the terminal by using ANSI color codes [1]. Then the onus is on the user/terminal developer to make sure the colors they’ve configured (or the defaults provided) are reasonable.

A downside of this is that it is quite restrictive, there are only like 8 colors.

EDIT: I missed the “regardless of the color map” bit, that is a bit unreasonable. Either you trust the terminal emulator or don’t. I think trying to have it both ways is too much.

[1]: https://gist.github.com/JBlond/2fea43a3049b38287e5e9cefc87b2...

0 comments

neilv1y ago

For example, I've seen a program that sets foreground color to a symbolic (not RGB value) yellow, and doesn't set background. While that combination might be legible on some terminals, it's definitely not on all of them. Don't assume that the user's terminal's color map makes all combinations legible.

Vegenoid1y ago

What combinations can be assumed to be legible? I think if a terminal user has their colors configured so that some of the 8 ASCII colors aren’t legible on their background, that’s on them, with the exception of white and black.

It seems like the only way to satisfy your ask is to not use color at all.

neilv1y ago

The default configurations of most terminals includes illegible color combinations.

So I think it's not on every user to somehow design optimal color palette settings on their computer that work in all combinations (if they even can), but rather on the developers of software not to say "Hey, I bet every yellow would be legible on white" or "Yolo, I bet yellow is legible on every background, so I'm just going to set this foreground to yellow and not set background at all."

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jrockway1y ago

I've definitely noticed this going on. `jj log` uses the right colors, but `watch --color jj log` somehow breaks and prints black-on-black.

mmphosis1y ago

  printf '\e[48;5;196m\e[93m test \e[!p\n'

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse

0 pointsratorx1y ago0 comments

A downside of this is that it is quite restrictive, there are only like 8 colors.

EDIT: I missed the “regardless of the color map” bit, that is a bit unreasonable. Either you trust the terminal emulator or don’t. I think trying to have it both ways is too much.

[1]: https://gist.github.com/JBlond/2fea43a3049b38287e5e9cefc87b2...

0 comments

neilv1y ago

Vegenoid1y ago

It seems like the only way to satisfy your ask is to not use color at all.

neilv1y ago

The default configurations of most terminals includes illegible color combinations.

1 more reply

jrockway1y ago

I've definitely noticed this going on. `jj log` uses the right colors, but `watch --color jj log` somehow breaks and prints black-on-black.

mmphosis1y ago

  printf '\e[48;5;196m\e[93m test \e[!p\n'

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse