Polybar Emoji Support - ulises-jeremias/dotfiles GitHub Wiki

πŸ˜€ Polybar: Emoji Support

Polybar in this dotfiles setup includes full emoji support using Noto Color Emoji fonts. You can now use colorful emojis alongside traditional Nerd Font icons to create visually appealing status bars.

[!TIP] Emoji support is available across all polybar configurations without modifying existing modules. Simply use the new font tags to display emojis in your custom scripts and modules.

🎨 Available Emoji Fonts

Four emoji font sizes have been added to all polybar configurations:

Font Tag Size Usage
%{T6} Small (size=10) Inline icons that match text size
%{T7} Medium (pixelsize=15) Slightly larger emphasis
%{T8} Large (pixelsize=20) Module headers or important status
%{T9} Extra Large (pixelsize=25) Dashboard-style displays

Remember to use %{T-} to reset back to the default font.

πŸš€ Quick Start Examples

Simple Emoji Usage

# Display battery with emoji
echo "%{T6}πŸ”‹%{T-} 85%"

# Weather with different sizes
echo "%{T7}🌀️%{T-} 22°C"
echo "%{T8}β˜€οΈ%{T-} Sunny"

Custom Script Example

#!/usr/bin/env bash
# Weather script with emoji support

case "$(dots-weather-info --condition)" in
    "sunny") echo "%{T7}β˜€οΈ%{T-} $(dots-weather-info --temp)" ;;
    "cloudy") echo "%{T7}☁️%{T-} $(dots-weather-info --temp)" ;;
    "rain") echo "%{T7}🌧️%{T-} $(dots-weather-info --temp)" ;;
    *) echo "%{T7}🌀️%{T-} $(dots-weather-info --temp)" ;;
esac

πŸ“¦ Module Integration

Direct Module Format

Use emojis directly in polybar module formats:

[module/cpu-emoji]
type = internal/cpu
interval = 2
format = %{T6}πŸ’»%{T-} %percentage:2%%

[module/memory-emoji]
type = internal/memory
interval = 2
format = %{T6}🧠%{T-} %percentage_used%%

[module/date-emoji]
type = internal/date
interval = 5
format = %{T6}πŸ“…%{T-} %date% %{T6}πŸ•%{T-} %time%

Script-Based Modules

Create enhanced scripts for existing modules:

[module/battery-emoji]
type = custom/script
exec = ~/.config/polybar/configs/default/scripts/battery-emoji
interval = 60

[module/volume-emoji]
type = custom/script
exec = ~/.config/polybar/configs/default/scripts/volume-emoji
interval = 1
click-left = pamixer --toggle-mute

🎯 Popular Emoji Collections

System Monitoring

  • πŸ’» CPU usage
  • 🧠 Memory/RAM
  • πŸ’Ύ Storage/Disk space
  • πŸ”₯ Temperature
  • ⚑ Power/Performance

Connectivity

  • πŸ“Ά WiFi signal
  • 🌐 Internet connection
  • πŸ“‘ Network activity
  • πŸ”— Connection status

Audio & Media

  • πŸ”Š High volume
  • πŸ”‰ Medium volume
  • πŸ”ˆ Low volume
  • πŸ”‡ Muted
  • 🎡 Music playing
  • ⏸️ Paused
  • ⏭️ Next track

Weather

  • β˜€οΈ Sunny
  • β›… Partly cloudy
  • ☁️ Cloudy
  • 🌧️ Rain
  • ❄️ Snow
  • β›ˆοΈ Thunderstorm

Power & Battery

  • πŸ”‹ Battery levels
  • πŸͺ« Low battery
  • πŸ”Œ Charging
  • πŸ’‘ Brightness

πŸ”§ Advanced Usage

Color Coordination

Combine emojis with polybar color formatting:

echo "%{F#ff6b6b}%{T7}πŸ”₯%{T-}%{F-} High CPU Usage"
echo "%{F#4ecdc4}%{T6}πŸ’Ύ%{T-}%{F-} Storage OK"
echo "%{F#ffcc02}%{T6}⚠️%{T-}%{F-} Warning"

Dynamic Emoji Selection

Create smart scripts that choose emojis based on values:

#!/usr/bin/env bash
# Smart battery emoji script

battery_level=$(cat /sys/class/power_supply/BAT0/capacity)
status=$(cat /sys/class/power_supply/BAT0/status)

if [ "$status" = "Charging" ]; then
    emoji="πŸ”Œ"
elif [ "$battery_level" -gt 75 ]; then
    emoji="πŸ”‹"
elif [ "$battery_level" -gt 25 ]; then
    emoji="πŸ”‹"
else
    emoji="πŸͺ«"
fi

echo "%{T6}$emoji%{T-} $battery_level%"

πŸ“ Updated Configuration Files

Emoji support has been added to these polybar configurations:

  • ~/.config/polybar/bars/common-top.conf
  • ~/.config/polybar/bars/common-bottom.conf
  • ~/.config/polybar/bars/i3-top.conf
  • ~/.config/polybar/bars/i3-bottom.conf
  • ~/.config/polybar/bars/i3-top-multipart.conf

πŸ§ͺ Testing Emoji Support

Test if emojis are working correctly:

  1. Restart Polybar:

    ~/.config/polybar/launch.sh

  2. Create a Test Module:

    [module/emoji-test]
type = custom/script
exec = echo "%{T6}πŸ”‹%{T-} %{T7}πŸ“Ά%{T-} %{T8}🌀️%{T-} %{T9}πŸ’»%{T-}"
interval = 60

  3. Add to Bar Configuration:

    modules-right = emoji-test

βœ… Compatibility

  • βœ… Rice Support: Works with all existing rice configurations
  • βœ… Font Compatibility: Compatible with current Nerd Font icons
  • βœ… Module Safety: No changes needed to existing modules
  • βœ… Backward Compatible: Existing setup continues to work
  • βœ… Window Manager: Works with both Openbox and i3

πŸ’‘ Best Practices

Accessibility

  • Always include descriptive text alongside emojis
  • Use consistent emoji meanings across modules
  • Consider colorblind-friendly alternatives

Performance

  • Avoid excessive emoji usage in high-frequency modules
  • Use appropriate font sizes for your display resolution
  • Test emoji rendering on different screen sizes

Design

  • Maintain visual consistency across your polybar setup
  • Use emojis to enhance, not replace, informative text
  • Consider your overall theme when choosing emojis

Ready to add some personality to your status bar with emojis! πŸŽ‰

[!TIP] Start with simple emojis in low-frequency modules like weather or battery, then expand to other areas as you get comfortable with the syntax.