2 HN users recommended this talk2 months2016–2025score 2
Years with an HN recommendation, 2007–2026
Recommended as the author's own explanation of xonsh's design and how Python and shell interplay.
Anthony Scopatz presents xonsh at PyCon 2016, a shell that is a superset of Python combining the best features of bash, zsh and fish. It covers rich history, tab completion, and how the language compiles to a Python AST.
“It's very easy to switch if you're willing to spend 30 minutes to go through this talk about its design by the author” (HN, 2025)
I'd highly recommend the xonsh shell for scripting if you're familiar with python: [link] Once you do tutorial and learn the rules for going between shell and python, it's super easy to slice and dice. I have always disliked that moment of "yes, a shell script is probably the best tool for this job" that then leads me to banging my head against bash syntax for an hour. Python libraries like `sh` are great, but still a little high overhead. Now the twice a month I have to shell script I find to be pretty fun, and I'd highly recommend xonsh. Great PyCon 2016 talk on it here: [this video]
Talk on using xonsh for Python-flavored shell scripting
Xonsh is a fantastic shell. I literally think they are most hindered by the name at this point, since it's one of those clever names that are pronounced in a peculiar way and one that doesn't convey too well that it's really Python + sh in a beautifully consistent design. It's very easy to switch if you're willing to spend 30 minutes to go through this talk about its design by the author: [this video] After this short intro you will know how Python and shell interact within xonsh and you'll avoid surprises. I wish it started faster, but it's a really small price to pay for having Python 3.13 open literally at all times.
Author explains xonsh design and Python/shell interplay
> BTW, i recall Intel showing off a variant of the python interpreter being run directly from GRUB. That was me: [link] , presented at Pycon 2015: [link] and 2016 with networking: [link] > Also, i think there was someone working on a Python CLI that could replace bash etc. That was "xonsh" ( [link] , pronounced "conch"), by Anthony Scopatz, presented at PyCon 2016: [this video]
PyCon 2016 talk introducing the xonsh Python shell
Video list and Hacker News comment labels from HackerTube (prompted by @karpathy), released under ODC-By 1.0, built on the open-index/hacker-news archive. Hacker News data is provided by Y Combinator; comments remain the work of their authors. Video titles, channel names and thumbnails belong to their creators and are shown via YouTube. HackerTube Watch is an unofficial edition. Data export of 2026-10-31.
Plays via YouTube's privacy-enhanced embed
3 Hacker News comments
From the HN archive; up to 20 kept per video, favoring different commenters. Recommendations first.
Read more
Citations, criticism and jokes