Interactive jq

#memo #jq #fzf #bash

I built an interactive jq TUI using fzf!

I was searching for an interactive jq editor when I came across this repo, which had an intriguing suggestion:

echo '' | fzf --print-query --preview "cat *.json | jq {q}" – An fzf hack that turns it into an interactive jq explorer.

This sent me down a rabbit hole, and I discovered just how incredibly configurable fzf is, e.g.:

  • You can bind custom keys to execute non-default behaviors: 
    --bind=ctrl-y:execute-silent(jq {q} $tempfile | pbcopy)
  • You can start fzf with an initial query: 
    --query="."
  • You can configure fzf with different layouts: 
    --preview-window=top:90%:wrap
  • You can add a multi-line header to provide instructions: 
    --header=$'ctrl+y : copy JSON\nctrl+f : copy filter\nenter : output\nesc : exit'

I wonder how many different TUIs I can create with just fzf?

Checkout the code for ijq here.