The sys admin's daily grind: TTYtter
Twittering Machine
Twitter, so everyone says, is modern, fun, sociologically illuminating and otherwise useless. Even Charly feeds a budgie – but at the console, it's a question of style.
I like graphical clients – in fact, I would be lost without Thunderbird – but because I often spend hours in front of machines without X11, I keep on top of the good old command-line tools. For example, I love using the Mutt mail client, and both slrn for Usenet and Irssi for IRC run on a small root server in a screen session.
Recently, I added another animal to my console zoo: TTYtter [1]. As you might guess from the hybrid name, TTYtter is a non-graphical Twitter client. The Perl script uses either cURL [2] or Lynx [3] to connect to the Twitter API. TTYtter's author, Cameron Kaiser, who also happens to be a doctor, deliberately avoided special Perl modules like Net::Twitter so that he could run the tool on systems that are not allowed to download modules from CPAN.
I normally start my TTYtter with the following command:
ttytter -vcheck -ansi -wrap-user=Username:Password
The first parameter checks that my TTYtter version is up to date. (Kaiser is still polishing the client; version 0.9.5 was the latest when this issue went to press.) The -ansi option tells the program to use extended control characters – so the console can support a colored display, for example. The -wrap parameter gives me clean newlines after 79 characters by default.
Admin Style to the Max
After launching, TTYtter shows me the last 10 tweets and the last two direct messages. At the prompt, I can write another tweet and dispatch it. To use any of the Twitter API's other functions, I need to issue IRC-style commands preceded by a slash (/). Typing /trends displays a list of the current hot topics (Figure 1). Conveniently, TTYtter also provides a list of commands [1].
Incidentally, it is not difficult to control the Twitter API directly with cURL. The line
curl --basic --user "User_Name:Password"--data-ascii "Blafasel""http://twitter.com/statuses/update.json"
sends the text Blafasel as a Tweet under my username. In fact, this example actually has a meaningful use. For example, I just twitter any status messages from my server that are interesting, as you can see in Figure 2.
Infos
- TTYtter: http://www.floodgap.com/software/ttytter/
- cURL: http://curl.linux-mirror.org/
- Lynx: http://lynx.isc.org/
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
So Long Neofetch and Thanks for the Info
Today is a day that every Linux user who enjoys bragging about their system(s) will mourn, as Neofetch has come to an end.
-
Ubuntu 24.04 Comes with a “Flaw"
If you're thinking you might want to upgrade from your current Ubuntu release to the latest, there's something you might want to consider before doing so.
-
Canonical Releases Ubuntu 24.04
After a brief pause because of the XZ vulnerability, Ubuntu 24.04 is now available for install.
-
Linux Servers Targeted by Akira Ransomware
A group of bad actors who have already extorted $42 million have their sights set on the Linux platform.
-
TUXEDO Computers Unveils Linux Laptop Featuring AMD Ryzen CPU
This latest release is the first laptop to include the new CPU from Ryzen and Linux preinstalled.
-
XZ Gets the All-Clear
The back door xz vulnerability has been officially reverted for Fedora 40 and versions 38 and 39 were never affected.
-
Canonical Collaborates with Qualcomm on New Venture
This new joint effort is geared toward bringing Ubuntu and Ubuntu Core to Qualcomm-powered devices.
-
Kodi 21.0 Open-Source Entertainment Hub Released
After a year of development, the award-winning Kodi cross-platform, media center software is now available with many new additions and improvements.
-
Linux Usage Increases in Two Key Areas
If market share is your thing, you'll be happy to know that Linux is on the rise in two areas that, if they keep climbing, could have serious meaning for Linux's future.
-
Vulnerability Discovered in xz Libraries
An urgent alert for Fedora 40 has been posted and users should pay attention.