cbink

cbink is an alternative bink client written by wrmr. It provides a more colorful curses based interface to towns isolated micro-blogging application.

Installation

cbink is not installed system wide so you will need to build it from the source code. Fortunately this process is very straight forward.

Run these commands:

1. git clone ~wrmr/git/cbink
2. cd cbink
3. make install

This will place the executable in your home directory under ".local/bin/". This should be in your default path if you haven't updated your shell's configuration.

You can also run "make run" to use the newly compiled executable any time you want to run it.

To update the source code run "git pull" and then "make run" to run the updated version. Similarly running "make install" will update your installation in your home directory.

Usage

To start the application run the command "cbink". You will be presented with the most recent bink posts and a list of shortcut keys at the bottom of the screen.

Here are a few essential commands to get you started.

Posting

Writing your own post is a simple matter of pressing the "c" key. Your default editor will then open where you will be free to write anything you like. When you're finished save your file and exit the editor. cbink will add your post to the time line.

If you need to revise your post use the cursor keys to move your post to the top of the screen. Press the "e" key and you will be transferred back into your editor with the contents of your post. Save and exit to update your post. You will then be returned to the time line.

Replying

There is no specific reply feature available in bink. The unofficial convention is to make a new post that starts with a tilde symbol and the username of the person you're replying to.

For example:

~innerteapot Tedcat is looking extra floofy today!

Profile Pictures

cbink extends the original functionality of bink by allowing users to set a small ASCII profile picture. This is displayed on the left side of the screen next to each post.

These pictures can be hidden my pressing the tab key. This can be useful on smaller screens and mobile ssh clients.

By default each user will start with the Bink Duck. However you can customise it by pressing "p". The default editor will be opened where you can enter ASCII characters. Take care not to make your picture too wide.

Where to go next?

You can view cbink's built in help screen by pressing the "?" key at any time. Here you can find all of the key bindings and configuration information.

If you have any questions about cbink please post in bbj or write a message in the #tildetown IRC chat room.

Credits

bink was written by nebula.

cbink was written by wrmr.

This guide was originally written by innerteapot based on notes by nebula and wrmr.

last compiled: 2026-03-01 05:10:38.110652