Zynk CLI

Images, video, and audio in Activity

Preview images in your terminal and set up mpv to watch videos and listen to audio.

Kitty graphics in the terminal

Activity displays images directly in your terminal using the Kitty graphics protocol. For video, mpv plays the file in the preview pane using the same protocol.

We recommend Kitty or Ghostty for media playback, especially demanding video. Both support Kitty graphics and GPU rendering.

Zynk checks for graphics support when it starts. If previews fail inside tmux or over SSH, try opening Zynk directly in the terminal.

Install mpv to play video or audio. Images work without it. Audio previews also require a terminal with Kitty graphics support.

If your terminal cannot display media, you can still browse and transfer files.

Check graphics support

$ zynk about

At the Zynk prompt, type about. Under Environment, Kitty Graphics shows Supported, Supported (shared memory), or Not supported. Both supported statuses allow graphics previews. Media (mpv) shows whether Zynk found mpv.

Protocol reference

The Kitty graphics protocol documentation explains how terminals receive and display images.

Installing mpv

Install mpv on the same machine as Zynk. If you can run mpv from your terminal, Zynk can find it without extra configuration.

Playback inside Activity works on macOS, Linux, and FreeBSD. It is not available in the native Windows CLI yet.

macOS with Homebrew

$ brew install mpv

Use the Homebrew mpv formula. For Linux or FreeBSD, choose a package from the mpv installation page.

Check that this shell can find mpv

$ mpv --versionmpv <version>

The output begins with the installed version. Run this in the same terminal environment you use for Zynk.

Check playback support

$ mpv --vo=help

Look for kitty for video and tct for the audio spectrum. Driver availability depends on the mpv build; see mpv’s output-driver reference.

Opening and playing media

After installing mpv, exit Zynk and open it again. Zynk checks for mpv once per session, so returning to the prompt is not enough.

Start a fresh Activity session

$ zynk activity

Playback steps

Press s to open the file picker, then select an audio or video file to preview. You can also preview received files after they have downloaded.
Press m to play or pause the active preview. Check the shortcuts at the bottom of the screen: outside a media preview, m can start a message.
Click the playback timeline to jump to another point. In the file picker, press f for fullscreen and Esc to return. When composing a message, use Tab to change the preview view.

How mpv is used

Zynk opens mpv for you when you start playback.
Activity ignores your personal mpv settings and shortcuts because it starts mpv with --no-config.
Over SSH, install mpv on the remote machine. The file must be there too, and sound plays through that machine’s audio output.

Recognized media files

Type: Images
Extensions recognized by Activity: png, jpg, jpeg, gif, webp

Type: Audio
Extensions recognized by Activity: mp3, m4a, wav, flac, aac, ogg, opus

Type: Video
Extensions recognized by Activity: mp4, mov, mkv, avi, webm, m4v

Type	Extensions recognized by Activity
Images	png, jpg, jpeg, gif, webp
Audio	mp3, m4a, wav, flac, aac, ogg, opus
Video	mp4, mov, mkv, avi, webm, m4v

Your copy of mpv must also support the file’s audio or video encoding.

When a preview does not work

For media previews, run Zynk in an interactive terminal without --json-output. Leave ZYNK_DISABLE_PROBE unset so Zynk can check for graphics support.

Symptom: Graphics preview unavailable
What to check: Use a terminal with Kitty graphics support. If you use tmux, screen, or SSH, try Zynk directly in the terminal first.

Symptom: mpv is not installed
What to check: Run mpv --version in the terminal where you use Zynk, then exit and restart Zynk.

Symptom: Video fails to start
What to check: Check that mpv --vo=help lists kitty. Update mpv if the driver or required Kitty options are unavailable, and check whether the local file plays in mpv on its own.

Symptom: Audio is silent
What to check: Check the volume and output device on the machine running Zynk. Over SSH, that is the remote machine.

Symptom: Custom mpv settings have no effect
What to check: Activity ignores your mpv config. Use the controls shown in the preview.

Symptom	What to check
Graphics preview unavailable	Use a terminal with Kitty graphics support. If you use tmux, screen, or SSH, try Zynk directly in the terminal first.
mpv is not installed	Run `mpv --version` in the terminal where you use Zynk, then exit and restart Zynk.
Video fails to start	Check that `mpv --vo=help` lists kitty. Update mpv if the driver or required Kitty options are unavailable, and check whether the local file plays in mpv on its own.
Audio is silent	Check the volume and output device on the machine running Zynk. Over SSH, that is the remote machine.
Custom mpv settings have no effect	Activity ignores your mpv config. Use the controls shown in the preview.