+TITLE: NcGopher README

ncgopher

=ncgopher= is a gopher and gemini client for the modern internet. It uses ncurses and is written in Rust.

** gopher

Gopher was developed in 1991 at the University of Minnesota, and named after the school's mascot. Gopher is a menu-driven interface that allows a user to browse for text information served off of various gopher servers.

** gemini

Gemini is a new application-level internet protocol for the distribution of arbitrary files, with some special consideration for serving a lightweight hypertext format which facilitates linking between files.

** Screenshot

Obligatory screenshot:

+CAPTION: Screenshot of NcGopher

+NAME: Light scheme

[[./screenshots/ncgopher.png]]

+CAPTION: Screenshot of NcGopher

+NAME: Dark mode

[[./screenshots/ncgopher-darkmode.png]]

** Features

Gopher and gemini support
Ncurses interface
Keyboard commands for navigation
Bookmarks support including custom title
History of visited gopher holes
Download of text files and gophermaps (Save as...)
Download of binary files
Menu for easy configuration
Mouse support in some terminals
TLS support
Darkmode!
Common search providers in search menu for quick access
External commands for HTML, images and Telnet

** Installation

=ncgopher= has no fancy installation process right now. Make sure to install rust on your system, but the latest release can be installed through cargo:

#+BEGIN_EXAMPLE
cargo install ncgopher
#+END_EXAMPLE

To install the latest development version:

#+BEGIN_EXAMPLE
git clone https://github.com/jansc/ncgopher.git
cd ncgopher
cargo build
cargo run
#+END_EXAMPLE

** Key bindings

During alpha, the keybindings are not configurable and many operations are still not implemented.

|------------+--------------------------------| | Key | Command | |------------+--------------------------------| | Arrow keys | Move around in text | | Enter | Open the link under the cursor | | Esc | Go to menubar | | Space | Scroll down one page | | g | Open new URL | | b | Navigate back | | q | Close application | | s | Save current page | | r | Reload current page | | i | Show link under cursor | | a | Add bookmark for current page | | n | Go to next link | | p | Go to previous link | | j | Move one line down | | k | Move one line up | |------------+--------------------------------|

Mouse support

=ncgopher= supports mouse interaction for menus and buttons in dialogs. If you want to select text, most terminal support selection while pressing =SHIFT=.

** Debugging

The software is still in beta, and it is also my first application written in Rust. Expect lots of bugs and badly written Rust code.

If the application crashes, I'd be interested in a backtrace. Start the application with ~RUST_BACKTRACE=1 cargo run~. There is also a debug view that can be activated with the =~=-key.

** License

=ncgopher= is licensed under the BSD 2-clause license.