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ANSI art screensaver for macOS — streams art from 16colo.rs BBS archive packs

189 starsSwift

ANSI-Saver – A macOS Screensaver

by lardissone·Mar 7, 2026·104 points·39 comments

AI Analysis

●●SolidCozyEye CandyRabbit Hole

Streams 16colo.rs BBS art with libansilove rendering; pure nostalgia fuel.

Strengths
  • Uses authentic libansilove library (same as 16colo.rs) for accurate CP437 rendering and art fidelity
  • Supports 7 ANSI file formats (.ANS, .ICE, .ASC, .BIN, .XB, .PCB, .ADF) with continuous scroll mode stacking art into endless streams
  • Local-first caching avoids repeated downloads; works with personal collections and configurable render scaling for Retina displays
Weaknesses
  • Apple Silicon only (arm64 static link) and macOS Tahoe 26.0+ requirement severely limits install base
  • Unsigned binary requires manual security bypass in System Settings, friction for casual installation
Category
Target Audience

nostalgia-driven macOS users, retro computing enthusiasts, BBS art collectors

Post Description

Hi, I've been working on something I've been thinking for long time but since I had no experience with macOS screen savers I always posponed. Now thanks to Claude I was able to create a screensaver that scroll ANSI files while your computer is idle.

It allow to use local ANS files or packs directly from 16colo.rs.

Repo: https://github.com/lardissone/ansi-saver

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