Anthony Scopatz - xonsh - PyCon 2016
Why Hacker News recommends it
Recommended as the author's own explanation of xonsh's design and how Python and shell interplay.
What it is
Anthony Scopatz presents xonsh at PyCon 2016, a shell that is a superset of Python combining the best features of bash, zsh and fish. It covers rich history, tab completion, and how the language compiles to a Python AST.
Recommended by 2 HN commenters across 2 different months, 2016 to 2025.
What Hacker News said
Recommends mycelium · 2018-04 · on “Why programmers are not paid in proportion to their productivity (2009)”
I'd highly recommend the xonsh shell for scripting if you're familiar with python: [LINK] Once you do tutorial and learn the rules for going between shell and python, it's super easy to slice and dice. I have always disliked that moment of "yes, a shell script is probably the best tool for this job" that then leads me to banging my head against bash syntax for an hour. Python libraries like `sh` are great, but still a little high overhead. Now the twice a month I have to shell script I find to be pretty fun, and I'd highly recommend xonsh. Great PyCon 2016 talk on it here: [this video]
Recommends ambivalence · 2025-02 · on “Xonsh – A Python-powered shell”
Xonsh is a fantastic shell. I literally think they are most hindered by the name at this point, since it's one of those clever names that are pronounced in a peculiar way and one that doesn't convey too well that it's really Python + sh in a beautifully consistent design. It's very easy to switch if you're willing to spend 30 minutes to go through this talk about its design by the author: [this video] After this short intro you will know how Python and shell interact within xonsh and you'll avoid surprises. I wish it started faster, but it's a really small price to pay for having Python 3.13 open literally at all times.
Cites JoshTriplett · 2016-11 · on “Why we need the best tools on Chromebooks and Raspberry Pi”
> BTW, i recall Intel showing off a variant of the python interpreter being run directly from GRUB. That was me: [LINK] , presented at Pycon 2015: [LINK] and 2016 with networking: [LINK] > Also, i think there was someone working on a Python CLI that could replace bash etc. That was "xonsh" ( [LINK] , pronounced "conch"), by Anthony Scopatz, presented at PyCon 2016: [this video]