xylem

README

xylem

A terminal file browser with syntax highlighting. Navigate your codebase and preview any file — like glow, but for all file types.

Install

# Homebrew
brew install lantzbuilds/tap/xylem

# Go
go install github.com/lantzbuilds/xylem@latest

Or download a binary from Releases.

Usage

# Browse current directory
xylem

# Browse a specific path
xylem ./src

# Start with line numbers
xylem --lines

# Use a specific theme
xylem --theme dracula

Key Bindings

Key	Action
Tab	Switch focus (tree/preview)
j/k ↑/↓	Navigate / scroll
h/l ←/→	Collapse / expand directory
Enter	Expand dir / full-screen file
Esc	Back to split view / clear search
n	Toggle line numbers
w	Toggle word wrap
t	Cycle syntax theme
r	Refresh directory
?	Help
q	Quit

Tree (when focused)

Key	Action
/	Search all files (uses rg if available)

Preview (when focused)

Key	Action
Ctrl+u / Page Up	Scroll up half-page
Ctrl+d / Page Down	Scroll down half-page
g/G	Jump to top / bottom
/	Search in file
n/N	Next / previous match
Esc	Clear search results
y	Copy file to clipboard
Y	Copy visible lines to clipboard

Themes

Cycle with t: monokai, dracula, github, solarized-dark, solarized-light, nord, onedark, gruvbox, catppuccin-mocha, catppuccin-latte, catppuccin-frappe, catppuccin-macchiato.

Features

• Syntax highlighting for 500+ languages via Chroma
• In-file search with match highlighting (/ in preview)
• Global content search across all files (/ in tree)
  • Uses ripgrep if installed, falls back to native Go
• Lazy directory loading
• Respects .gitignore
• Binary file detection
• Clipboard copy (file or visible lines)
• Mouse support
• Built with Bubble Tea

License

MIT