eneskirca/nodeterm

nodeterm – a spatial terminal‑and‑AI‑agent manager

What it is – nodeterm is a cross‑platform desktop (macOS, Linux, Windows) and server‑side web app built with Electron. It lets you create nodes on an infinite pan‑and‑zoom canvas. Each node can be a real terminal (backed by tmux), an AI agent (Claude Code, Gemini, Copilot, etc.), a sticky note, a Monaco‑based code editor, a diff view, or a web/video embed. All nodes persist across app restarts, so your shells keep running and your AI conversations stay alive.

Why it matters – Traditional terminal tabs hide context; nodeterm turns each session into a spatial object you can label, group, and link. The same canvas doubles as a Trello‑style Kanban board, and the state can be accessed from a self‑hosted browser server or an iOS companion app. This makes complex, multi‑process workflows (e.g., running builds, debugging, and prompting AI assistants) easier to visualise and manage, especially for users who benefit from a visual layout.

Key features

• Node‑based canvas – right‑click to add terminals, AI agents, notes, editors, diffs, or web embeds; drag, zoom, and label freely.
• Persistent tmux sessions – terminals keep running (including processes and scrollback) across node remounts and full machine reboots.
• AI agents – built‑in support for Claude Code and other models; agents show live status badges (RUNNING / NEEDS YOU), can read context from linked notes, and can drive the canvas via a CLI.
• Kanban view – toggle with ⌘⇧B; each node appears as a card that can be moved between columns while the underlying session continues.
• Remote & mobile – pair a phone via QR code; the iOS app shows the same live sessions and can answer agent prompts. A “Server Edition” runs head‑less on a Linux host and is reachable from any browser.
• Voice dictation – hold ⌘⌥ (Ctrl+Alt) to transcribe locally with Whisper and type into the terminal prompt.
• Git integration – worktree‑aware groups, full staging/committing UI, and optional GitHub‑Issues‑to‑Kanban sync.
• Cross‑platform packaging – .dmg, Homebrew cask, AppImage, .deb, .rpm, Windows installer, and iOS app.

Typical workflow

1. Open a new project → a blank canvas appears.
2. Right‑click to drop a terminal node; it spawns a tmux session.
3. Add an AI agent node (e.g., Claude Code) and link a sticky note containing context.
4. Switch to the Kanban view, move the agent’s card to In Progress; the agent continues running.
5. Pair your iPhone, scan the QR code, and monitor the session from the pocket app.
6. When the agent signals NEEDS YOU, click the badge, answer the prompt, and the badge turns green.

How to get it – Download pre‑built binaries from https://nodeterm.dev or install via Homebrew (brew install --cask nodeterm). The source can be built with Node 20+, tmux, and the usual Electron toolchain (npm ci && npm run dist).

License – Business Source License 1.1 (BUSL‑1.1).