xdotool ☆

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Description:
Fake keyboard/mouse input and window management for X

Type: Formula | Tracked Since: Dec 28, 2025

Links: Homepage | formulae.brew.sh

Category: Productivity

Tags: automation x11 gui productivity cli

Install: brew install xdotool

About:
xdotool is a command-line interface to X11's XTEST extension and other X11 features. It enables users to programmatically simulate keyboard input, mouse movements, and clicks. Its main value is providing a robust way to automate GUI interactions and window management tasks directly from the shell or scripts.

Key Features:

Simulate keyboard input and key presses
Control mouse movement and clicks
Manage windows (move, resize, activate, close)
Scriptable command-line interface

Use Cases:

Automating GUI application testing
Creating custom keyboard shortcuts or macros
Window management scripting for custom desktop environments

Alternatives:

AutoKey – Provides a GUI and scripting in Python, whereas xdotool is purely CLI-based.
wmctrl – Focuses specifically on window management, lacking xdotool's input simulation capabilities.

Version History

Detected	Version	Rev	Change	Commit
Nov 20, 2024 12:14am		0	VERSION_BUMP	4d6c96a8