"It's not code until it is documented and tested code!
and it's not documented-and-tested code until it is
thoroughly understood by someone else."
--- Software Sam, 2014
Welcome to the home of the
Software Samurai
Copyright © 2026 The Software Samurai Updated:
Software Sam presents Linux software tools, API libraries, well-documented source code, copius examples,
online docs, student exercises, bad poetry and fun for geeks of all ages and skill levels.
All code posted on this site is designed for GNU/Linux systems.
GNU/Linux does not just jump out of the box and run; it requires patience, curiosity and determination. Please help the GNU/Linux community move toward an out-of-the-box solution for students, grandmas, Liberal Arts majors and the rest of the vast non-technical world who just need to get useful work done.
If you are developing for that other operating system, shame on you! Unless you have accidentally wandered into this site while looking for porn, you are a software designer, and as such you have super-powers (able to leap tall buildings and so on). Software Sam encourages you to use those powers for Good rather than Evil.
Go to the Downloads page to download the API source and documentation,
or Click here to take the tour.
AnsiCmd Library Updated
The AnsiCmd Library of ANSI escape sequences and other tools has grown considerably over the winter months, and the author is
happy to share results with the community. The AnsiCmd library includes not only the full array of ANSI escape sequences, but also
a console configuration module, temporary file management engine, Wayland system clipboard interface and conversion of keycodes which
arrive as escape sequences, as well as window-oriented and dialog-oriented C++ class constructs.
While the text editor demo app is not quite ready for prime-time, the beta-testers have reported that the AnsiCmd library itself is now stable. Enjoy!
Because this is a very simple utility, it is unable to deliver a full-grown emu to your doorstep;
if however, feathered bipeds are more your thing, we recommend the safari park near Adelaide, SA.
All code posted on this site is designed for GNU/Linux systems.
GNU/Linux does not just jump out of the box and run; it requires patience, curiosity and determination. Please help the GNU/Linux community move toward an out-of-the-box solution for students, grandmas, Liberal Arts majors and the rest of the vast non-technical world who just need to get useful work done.
If you are developing for that other operating system, shame on you! Unless you have accidentally wandered into this site while looking for porn, you are a software designer, and as such you have super-powers (able to leap tall buildings and so on). Software Sam encourages you to use those powers for Good rather than Evil.
NcDialog Application Programming Interface
NcDialog is a full-featured application development library for console-based applications.Go to the Downloads page to download the API source and documentation,
or Click here to take the tour.
AnsiCmd Library Updated
(2026-04-01 – v:0.0.07 will be posted soon)
The AnsiCmd Library of ANSI escape sequences and other tools has grown considerably over the winter months, and the author is
happy to share results with the community. The AnsiCmd library includes not only the full array of ANSI escape sequences, but also
a console configuration module, temporary file management engine, Wayland system clipboard interface and conversion of keycodes which
arrive as escape sequences, as well as window-oriented and dialog-oriented C++ class constructs.While the text editor demo app is not quite ready for prime-time, the beta-testers have reported that the AnsiCmd library itself is now stable. Enjoy!
getEmu - New! (released, 2026-04-01)
This is a simple console utility which reports the name, version number and other information about the terminal emulator program from which the application was launched. The simple algorithm used to capture this information can be integrated into any console application in about ten minutes. Give it a try.Because this is a very simple utility, it is unable to deliver a full-grown emu to your doorstep;
if however, feathered bipeds are more your thing, we recommend the safari park near Adelaide, SA.
Software Sam is happy to correct any factual errors, distortions and omissions on this site; however,
Sam's opinions are based on his massive ego, and are therefore rather difficult to modify.
Technical Note: The static data of this website is constructed using HTML5 and CSS3.
All pages have been tested with Firefox 148.0.2, and Brave(tm) 1.88.132 (Chromium(tm) 146.0.7680.80).
Rendering in MS-Edge(tm) is adequate, but no one who cares about security would use Edge (or IE) anyway.
Note that the selection of the browser's default monospaced font may affect the rendering of screenshots within the documentation. (Sam recommends DejaVu Sans Mono.)
Note that the selection of the browser's default monospaced font may affect the rendering of screenshots within the documentation. (Sam recommends DejaVu Sans Mono.)
