ACachairapart·Sep 20, 2026
Also, for MacOS: https://github.com/Swordfish90/cool-retro-term
In The Effect of CRTs on Pixel Art (2024)Swordfish90
cool-retro-term
QML2014–2026
Swordfish90 / cool-retro-term
cool-retro-term
A good looking terminal emulator which mimics the old cathode display...
91Distinct people
105Mentions
2Explicit recommenders
26.6KGitHub stars
What to know before exploring
What it is
A good looking terminal emulator which mimics the old cathode display...
GitHub
Where it is used
No documented product use was verified in the last source check.
What people are saying
If you enjoy this look, I recommend checking this out: https://github.com/Swordfish90/cool-retro-term
VikingCoder used a recommendation phrase. 2 indexed comments match. This is a phrase match, not a verdict.
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Also in these discussions
No other repository is repeatedly linked in the same discussions.
This week on Hacker News
Nov 7–Nov 14 UTC · Direct repository links and separately labeled related project stories. Indexed through 11/14/2026, 5:04:57 PM UTC.
No direct repository links were found in the indexed HN discussions over the past seven days. Older discussions are available below.
Mentions over time
HN mentions by year105 dated mentions
Observed mentions: 2014-07-03 17:30:52 UTC to 2026-09-20 22:24:12 UTC.
* An incomplete calendar period is marked with an outlined bar. Its count is not directly comparable with a full period.
Counts come from the repository’s dated source evidence. Index cutoff: 2026-11-02 08:16:59 UTC.
View mention counts and date ranges
| Period | Start (UTC) | End (exclusive, UTC) | Mentions | Submissions | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 2014-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2015-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 8 | 2 | 6 |
| 2015 | 2015-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2016-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 5 | 1 | 4 |
| 2016 | 2016-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2017-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| 2017 | 2017-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2018-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 6 | 1 | 5 |
| 2018 | 2018-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2019-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 9 | 3 | 6 |
| 2019 | 2019-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2020-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 10 | 2 | 8 |
| 2020 | 2020-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2021-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 7 | 1 | 6 |
| 2021 | 2021-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2022-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 8 | 1 | 7 |
| 2022 | 2022-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2023-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 10 | 1 | 9 |
| 2023 | 2023-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2024-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 19 | 1 | 18 |
| 2024 | 2024-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2025-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 10 | 1 | 9 |
| 2025 | 2025-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2026-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 5 | 1 | 4 |
| 2026 (partial) | 2026-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2027-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 4 | 1 | 3 |
What Hacker News says
105 sourcesYeah and CRT emulation can be a pretty deep rabbit hole. The amount of work that goes into making things skeuomorphic is pretty wild.
If you want to see a neat example, check out cool-retro-term, it’s been around for a while but is still super impressive.
https://github.com/Swordfish90/cool-retro-term
In Show HN: QBasic Gorillas (Repeeled)Not exactly, but there is cool retro term: https://github.com/Swordfish90/cool-retro-term
In Hackers (1995) Animated ExperienceSo now let's get ShaderGlass [1] and this to have a baby, so we can have cool-retro-term [2] in the browser.
[1] https://github.com/mausimus/ShaderGlass
[2] https://github.com/Swordfish90/cool-retro-term
In Ghostty compiled to WASM with xterm.js API compatibilityCool-retro-term: terminal emulator which mimics look and feel of CRTs
298 points · Open discussionReminds me of cool-retro-term - a terminal that looks like a CRT
https://github.com/Swordfish90/cool-retro-term
In Shader GlassWhenever I see stuff like this, the ITX Llama [1], Pixel x86, etc. I think it's finally the time to build my ultimate love-letter to old school DOS and retro computing but always stop short because of the monitor issue.
I feel like a lot of my nostalgia likely stems from the bright super low latency phosphor displays of a proper CRT. No amount of WebGL shaders/filters [2] ever quite seem to capture the original experience IMHO.
[1] https://smallformfactor.net/news/retro-sff-itx-llama-is-a-br...
[2] https://github.com/Swordfish90/cool-retro-term
In Dosbian: Boot to DOSBox on Raspberry PiYou will enjoy cool retro term! https://github.com/Swordfish90/cool-retro-term
In olduse.netNo mention of Cool Retro Term!?!? Typical elitist behavior... /s
I'm just having a bit of fun, but it is a fun terminal every once in a while. https://github.com/Swordfish90/cool-retro-term
In Ghostty 1.0You might like cool-retro-term[1] - it's fun to play around with for a bit :)
[1] https://github.com/Swordfish90/cool-retro-term
In Stripe Black Friday Dashboard (Physical Machine)Try this perhaps: https://github.com/Swordfish90/cool-retro-term
In Hacking the T2S+ Out of Fear: Get Lock-In Thermography for FreeLove the look, definitely throwing me back to the halcyon QBasic days.
Slightly related but another way to simulate a retro text editor (old school raster style green screen aesthetic in this instance) is to combine the "cool-retro-term" terminal with the minimal editor "micro".
https://github.com/Swordfish90/cool-retro-term
https://github.com/zyedidia/micro
In Show HN: A retro terminal text editor for GNU/Linux coded in C (C-edit)But I need my aesthetic! https://github.com/Swordfish90/cool-retro-term?tab=readme-ov...
In Ask HN: Why are we concerned about terminal rendering speeds?is it because monitors of the time were all slightly 'bent' outwards?
nothing was a perfect square
https://github.com/Swordfish90/cool-retro-term
In Show HN: Original 8x16 ASCII Fixed Width Font: Classic Console NeueShowing the 15 most recent of 105 sources. Enable JavaScript to search and browse every indexed mention.