Files
MeshTerm/docs/README.md
T
Jean-Pierre MartineauandClaude Opus 5.5 b5fc1f8930 The docs name both Cardputer Zero models and warn against hot-swapping a Cap
MeshTerm runs the same on the Cardputer Zero (C154) and the Cardputer Zero
Lite (C155): the Lite only leaves out a camera, motion sensors, and the
microSD card, none of which MeshTerm uses. The device manual, the README,
the manuals index, and the About page now say that both models are supported,
and the manual says that the Lite needs a card with M5Stack's system first.

M5Stack does not support hot-swapping a Cap on the Cardputer Zero, the Cap
LoRa-1262 included, and says that it may cause the device to malfunction.
The manual now puts that caution before its steps for the Cap, with M5Stack's
other caution (the antenna goes on before the power), and the steps turn the
handheld off first. It also says that MeshTerm switching the header off when
it quits does not make a Cap safe to remove. The About page says the same in
its own voice, and gains a section on the Cardputer Zero next to the uConsole
and the PicoCalc.

The README shows the Cardputer Zero's start screen (the store's capture,
three times its size) under the PicoCalc photo, and its quick start shows the
emulator command. The pip commands with the spi extra install from GitHub,
because mesh-term is not on PyPI yet. The platform comment and CLAUDE.md no
longer say that the hardware is not in hand: only a flag selects the platform
because the device-tree model is the CM0's generic string.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5.5 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-10-14 02:59:46 -04:00

4.5 KiB

MeshTerm documentation

This folder has everything that does not belong on the front page. The README is the front door. It says what MeshTerm is, how to install it, and how to start a first session. This folder has the other documents, in four parts:

Folder What is in it
guide/ How to use MeshTerm: what each screen does, how to configure it, how to connect a companion, and terminals.
cli/ The manual of the command line, and a cookbook of one-line commands.
devices/ How to run MeshTerm on a handheld's own screen, with one manual for each device.
development/ How the code is laid out, how we write, and a historical survey.

Using MeshTerm

Read For
What MeshTerm does Each screen that the menu has, in the same groups as the menu, with the command that does the same job without the menu.
Configuring MeshTerm The difference between preferences and config, the device profiles, and all the files that MeshTerm keeps in ~/.meshterm.
When a companion does not connect Bluetooth pairing on each system, how to find the PIN, and each connection error that MeshTerm reports, with the action to take.
Terminals, icons, and the Windows console Why the icons and charts draw correctly on some terminals and not on others, and what MeshTerm does about it on Windows.

The command line

Read For
The command line The manual. Each subcommand and option, what each prints on the plain face and on the JSON face, the exit statuses, and recipes that use jq.
The CLI cookbook Common one-line commands, in groups by task. Use it when you want the form of a command and not its specification.

Running it on a handheld

Read these documents only if you want to run MeshTerm on a handheld's own screen. A MeshCore companion on USB, Bluetooth, or Wi-Fi does not need them.

Read For
MeshTerm on hardware Start here. It says which of the manuals below is the correct one for you, and what the scripts on the device do.
MeshTerm on the PicoCalc How to change a stock ClockworkPi PicoCalc into a Linux handheld that has a LoRa radio soldered inside: the shopping list, the change to a Luckfox Lyra core, Calculinux, and the radio.
MeshTerm on the uConsole A uConsole (CM4 or CM5) with the hackergadgets AIO LoRa board. Its SX1262 is on the computer's own SPI bus. MeshTerm can control it directly with --spi. Or a small bridge can make it a companion for a node that is always on.
MeshTerm on the Cardputer Zero M5Stack's Linux Cardputer, the standard model or the Lite: how to install MeshTerm from the app store, use the Cap LoRa-1262 radio, and try the layout in the desktop emulator.

Reading the code

Read For
How the code is laid out The layers of the code, and where to put a new feature.
How we write How we write: the ASD-STE100 rules and the glossary for docstrings, comments, and documents.
CLAUDE.md The real style guide: the terms, the UX standards, and the building blocks that you can use again. It is written for AI assistants, and it has the house rules for everyone.
CONTRIBUTING.md How to propose a change, the rules for the use of AI, the dev install, the three checks that a change must pass, and what happens to the licensing of your contribution.

Historical record

This is a survey of the code. We keep it, because a project that writes down its own problems is easier to trust than a project that does not. But it is a snapshot of one date, not a list of tasks. Some of the problems that it describes are corrected now, and the survey does not say which.

Read For
UI consistency survey Each other point of the CLAUDE.md UX standard. Six sweeps found nothing, and this is the useful result.

Also here

screenshots/ has the captures that the README shows. It also has the captures from which meshterm.net builds its landing page. Thus more than one place refers to each file in this folder.