WtfUI

A Pythonic UI framework for building interactive web applications entirely in Python.

WtfUI uses Python's context managers to define UI hierarchy (indentation = topology) and a reactive signal system for state management. No JavaScript required.

Prerequisites

• Python 3.14+ (No-GIL build required)
• uv package manager

Quick Start

# Clone and setup
git clone https://github.com/pproenca/wtfui.git
cd wtfui
make setup

Demo Examples

WtfUI includes four example applications demonstrating different capabilities.

Web Examples

Run any of these in separate terminals:

# Todo App - Signal reactivity and Effect persistence
cd examples/todo && uv run wtfui dev --web
# Open http://localhost:8000

# Dashboard - Computed values and Flexbox layout
cd examples/dashboard && uv run wtfui dev --web
# Open http://localhost:8001

# Chat - @rpc decorator for server functions
cd examples/chat && uv run wtfui dev --web
# Open http://localhost:8002

TUI Example

# Console - Terminal-based system monitor
cd examples/console && uv run wtfui dev
# Renders directly in terminal (press 'q' to quit)

Web vs TUI Mode

WtfUI supports two rendering modes:

Mode	Command	Output
TUI (default)	wtfui dev	Terminal-based UI
Web	wtfui dev --web	Browser at localhost

Core Concepts

Signals (Reactive State)

from wtfui import Signal

count = Signal(0)
count.value += 1  # Triggers reactive updates

Context Manager UI

from wtfui.ui import Flex, Box, Text

with Flex(direction="column"):
    with Box(padding=10):
        Text("Hello, WtfUI!")

RPC (Server Functions)

from wtfui import rpc

@rpc
def save_data(data: dict) -> bool:
    # Runs on server, client gets fetch stub
    db.save(data)
    return True

Architecture

See MANIFEST.md for architectural principles.

Development

make test      # Run tests
make lint      # Run linters
make check     # All pre-commit hooks