ColorScripts-Enhanced 2026.7.20.2250

ColorScripts-Enhanced PowerShell Module

Credits: Built upon shell-color-scripts by Derek Taylor and ps-color-scripts by Scott McKendry. Enhanced with selective output caching, configuration management, and cross-platform support.

Discover and display ANSI colorscripts in PowerShell. Static scripts execute directly, while policy-selected computational renderers can reuse validated output.

Features

• 🎨 3156+ Colorscripts — Fractals, patterns, characters, nature scenes, and more
• ⚡ Selective Caching — Reuses output for the 15 expensive renderers listed in CachePolicy.psd1
• 🌐 Cross-Platform — Works on Windows, macOS, and Linux
• ⚙️ Configurable — Persist cache location, startup behavior, and defaults
• Rich Metadata — Filter by name, category, and tag or export structured catalog data
• 🐾 2500~ Pokémon ColorScripts — Opt-in Pokémon-themed colorscripts
  • Note: Pokémon art is filtered by default to keep load times fast. Opt in with -IncludePokemon on relevant commands.
• 🌍 10 Languages — English, German, Spanish, French, Italian, Japanese, Dutch, Portuguese, Russian, Chinese
• 🗄️ Platform-Aware Storage — Query or configure the effective cache path
• 🔄 Auto-Update — Cache invalidates automatically when scripts change

Quick Start

Install-Module ColorScripts-Enhanced -Scope CurrentUser

Import-Module ColorScripts-Enhanced
Show-ColorScript # Shows a random colorscript
scs -IncludePokemon # Alias: scs with Pokémon art

Add-ColorScriptProfile
Add-ColorScriptProfile -IncludePokemon -SkipPokemonPrompt

Basic Usage

Show-ColorScript  # or alias: scs

Show-ColorScript -Name hearts
scs mandelbrot-zoom

Get-ColorScriptList

Get-ColorScriptList -Category Geometric

New-ColorScriptCache

Show-ColorScript -IncludePokemon

Clear-ColorScriptCache -All

All Commands

Getting Help

PowerShell uses Get-Help for detailed help. Every exported command also accepts -h (alias -help) for a concise view:

# Get detailed help with examples
Get-Help Show-ColorScript -Full

# View just the examples
Get-Help Show-ColorScript -Examples

# Get help for a specific parameter
Get-Help Show-ColorScript -Parameter Name

# View the about topic for module overview
Get-Help about_ColorScripts-Enhanced

Performance

Caching is deliberately narrow:

• Static output scripts execute directly without creating cache files.
• The 15 renderers in CachePolicy.psd1 are eligible for output caching.
• Cache entries are invalidated when relevant source or policy metadata changes.
• Performance depends on the renderer, host, filesystem, and terminal; no fixed multiplier is guaranteed.
• Query (Get-ColorScriptConfiguration).Cache.EffectivePath for the effective cache location.

Profile Integration

Add colorscripts to your PowerShell profile:

# Add with automatic random colorscript on startup
Add-ColorScriptProfile

# Import only (no automatic display)
Add-ColorScriptProfile -SkipStartupScript

# Target a specific profile file
Add-ColorScriptProfile -ProfilePath $PROFILE.CurrentUserCurrentHost

# Use custom profile path
Add-ColorScriptProfile -Path $PROFILE.CurrentUserAllHosts

Advanced Features

Export Metadata

# Export all metadata with file and cache info
Export-ColorScriptMetadata -IncludeFileInfo -IncludeCacheInfo

# Save to file for external automation
Export-ColorScriptMetadata -Path ./metadata.json

Create Custom Colorscripts

# Scaffold a new colorscript with metadata
$scaffold = New-ColorScript -Name 'my-art' -Category 'Custom' -GenerateMetadataSnippet

# Open in your editor
code $scaffold.Path

Force Fresh Execution

# Bypass cache for testing
Show-ColorScript -Name hearts -NoCache

Requirements

• PowerShell: 5.1+ (Desktop) or 7.0+ (Core)
• Platforms: Windows, macOS, Linux
• Terminal: Any terminal with ANSI escape code support
• Optional: Nerd Font for icon-heavy scripts (nerd-font-test, dev-workspace)

Links & Resources

Full Documentation: https://github.com/Nick2bad4u/ps-color-scripts-enhanced

• Quick Reference Guide
• ANSI Conversion Guide
• Development Guide
• Issue Tracker

Contributing

Submit colorscripts, report bugs, or suggest features.

CONTRIBUTING.md

License

Project-authored code uses the Unlicense. Incorporated third-party art remains subject to its original authors' rights and source terms.