VHS Recorder
Create terminal recordings with Charm's VHS. Use when creating CLI demos, README animations, documentation videos.
Prerequisites
vhs installed (brew install vhs / go install github.com/charmbracelet/vhs@latest)ttyd and ffmpeg on PATH
Tape File Structure
Output demo.gif # Outputs first
Set Width 1200 # Settings second
Set Theme "Catppuccin Mocha"
Require git # Requirements third
Hide # Hidden setup
Type "cd /tmp && clear"
Enter
Show
Type "your command" # Main recording
Enter
Wait
Sleep 2s
Core Commands
| Command |
Purpose |
Type "text" |
Type text (uses TypingSpeed setting) |
Enter / Tab / Space |
Key presses |
Up / Down / Left / Right |
Arrow navigation |
PageUp / PageDown |
Page navigation |
Ctrl+C / Ctrl+D / Ctrl+L |
Signal/EOF/clear combos |
Wait / Wait /pattern/ |
Wait for prompt or regex match |
Sleep 2s |
Fixed pause (supports ms/s/m) |
Hide/Show |
Hide setup/cleanup from output |
Type@50ms "text" |
Override typing speed inline |
Backspace N / Delete N |
Delete N chars back/forward |
Copy / Paste |
Clipboard operations |
Screenshot path.png |
Capture single frame |
Env VAR "value" |
Set environment variable |
Essential Settings
| Setting |
Default |
Notes |
| Width/Height |
1200/600 |
Terminal dimensions in pixels |
| FontSize |
32 |
Text size; FontFamily for custom fonts |
| TypingSpeed |
50ms |
Per-char delay (override with Type@Xms) |
| Theme |
- |
Use vhs themes to list all available |
| Padding |
40 |
Border space; LetterSpacing/LineHeight also available |
Timing & Patterns
3-2-1 Rule: 3s after important commands, 2s between actions, 1s for transitions
- Clean start:
Hide → Type "clear" → Enter → Show
- Command-wait:
Type → Enter → Wait → Sleep 2s
- Fast hidden:
Type@10ms "setup command"
- ASCII preview:
Output demo.ascii for instant test
Output Formats
| Format |
Use Case |
.gif |
Web/README (universal) |
.mp4/.webm |
Social media / modern browsers |
.ascii |
Preview/test (instant, no ffmpeg) |
frames/ |
PNG sequence for post-processing |
Quick Fixes
| Issue |
Solution |
| Commands too fast |
Add Wait + Sleep 2s after Enter |
| Messy terminal |
Hide → clear → Show at start |
| Inconsistent pacing |
Follow 3-2-1 timing rule |
CLI Commands
vhs demo.tape # Run tape file
vhs themes # List all available themes
vhs manual # Show full command reference
References