This is my cat; Akira!!

(vibe coded only) A custom Linux multipurpose tray application that shows a floating overlay (image, text, PDF, or both) anywhere on the desktop when a global keyboard shortcut is pressed. Purpose of this is to reference stuff you need instantly with a shortcut, I know alt-tab exist, but sometimes it's more than the alt-tab.

Also a feature to help you read if you have issues focusing. Reading highlighting line that follows the cursor, or a blacked out screen showing only the line reading; again following the line. Both lines can change colors and opacity of your liking.And blackout opacity as well.

Features

• Multifunctional software — designed to suit my needs.
• Global hotkeys — trigger from any application; all shortcuts are configurable
• Up to 4 stacked images — set 1–4 images in Settings; they display vertically stacked in the overlay; empty slots are hidden automatically
• Image, text, or both — display image(s), styled text, or both together so you can reference something
• PDF viewer — display any PDF page in the overlay; scroll wheel navigates pages; configurable render quality
• Reading line — a horizontal guide that follows the cursor; two modes: thin colored line or full-screen dimmer with a transparent reading slot
• Screen dimmer — dims the entire screen except a transparent slot at the cursor's Y position, helping focus while reading
• System tray — lives quietly in the tray; left-click or use the shortcut to toggle
• Customizable appearance — background color, opacity, text font/size/color, window size
• Custom tray icon — use any image as the tray & app-menu icon
• Settings GUI — open with Ctrl+Shift+S or from the tray menu; change everything at runtime without restarting
• Single instance — launching a second copy exits immediately
• Persistent config — settings saved to ~/.config/akira/config.json

Requirements

• Linux with X11 or XWayland (works on KDE Plasma Wayland via XWayland)
• Python 3.10+
• PyQt6 ≥ 6.4
• pynput ≥ 1.7.6
• PyMuPDF ≥ 1.23 (for PDF mode)

Installation

git clone https://github.com/sabliran/AKIRA.git
cd AKIRA
bash install.sh

install.sh installs Python dependencies (PyQt6, pynput, PyMuPDF), creates a .desktop entry for your app launcher, and sets up autostart on login.

Running manually

python3 main.py

Flatpak / sandboxed terminal users: use flatpak-spawn --host python3 main.py

Usage

1. The app icon appears in your system tray after launch.
2. Press Ctrl+Shift+I (or your configured shortcut) to show/hide the overlay.
3. Right-click the tray icon → Settings… (or press Ctrl+Shift+S) to configure:
   • Content tab — choose Image, Text, Image + Text, or PDF mode; set up to 4 image paths (Image 1–4) that stack vertically in the overlay
   • Appearance tab — colors, opacity, window size, custom tray icon
   • Shortcut tab — record global shortcuts for the overlay and for opening Settings
   • Reading Line tab — enable/configure the reading line guide

PDF mode

• Select a PDF file in Settings → Content → PDF
• Scroll up/down on the overlay to navigate pages
• Increase Render scale (default 1.00×) for sharper text on high-DPI screens

Reading line

• Toggle with Ctrl+Shift+L (configurable)
• Press Escape to turn it off from anywhere
• Right-click the overlay to lock the line at the current Y position (unlocks on right-click again or left-click)
• Left-click the overlay to turn the reading line off
• Two modes selectable in Settings:
  • Line — thin colored horizontal line following the cursor
  • Screen dimmer — dims the whole screen; a transparent slot shows the text at cursor height
• Enable Cycle through modes to step through off → line → dimmer → off with one shortcut
• Customise color, opacity, and thickness (line mode) or dimmer color, opacity, and slot height (screen dimmer mode)

File structure

main.py              # Entry point: tray icon, wires listener → display window
config_manager.py    # load() / save() — config persistence
hotkey_listener.py   # QObject wrapping pynput.keyboard.GlobalHotKeys
display_window.py    # Frameless always-on-top Qt overlay (image / text / PDF)
reading_line.py      # Full-screen transparent overlay for the reading line
settings_window.py   # Tabbed settings dialog
requirements.txt     # Python dependencies
install.sh           # Installer script

License

MIT