Show HN: BlenderQ – A TUI for managing multiple Blender renders

1 month ago 3

BlenderQ is a terminal UI (TUI) tool for managing a queue of local Blender renders. Add a collection of .blend files to a queue and monitor their progress from the terminal.

⚠️ Still in Beta!: This project is in its early stages and may have bugs or incomplete features. Please report any issues you encounter.

Interactive terminal interface using Ink
Theme support
Queue and render multiple .blend files
Simple navigation and status tracking

Node.js (v20+)
Blender (v3.5+)
Optional Nerd Fonts (for the icons)

Install the BlenderQ CLI globally using npm or pnpm:

npm install -g blenderq # or pnpm add -g blenderq

Usage: blenderq [options] Options: -V, --version output the version number -z, --skip-splash Skip splash screen -d, --dir <dir> Set the directory to start in -b, --blend <blend...> Set the blend files to open -h, --help display help for command

Why Node.js instead of Python or Go?

I chose Node.js (TypeScript) primarily because it’s where my strengths lie, and I needed to quickly deliver a functional, maintainable TUI. Python and Go were attractive options, but they lacked pre-built components that matched my requirements, which would have significantly increased development time. Additionally, React-inspired design patterns in Ink made Node.js especially appealing for building clean, responsive terminal UIs. While I may explore Python in the future to integrate more directly with Blender, Node.js allowed me to efficiently ship something that works right now.