The whinge command

whinge controls the Whinge app. Install the command from Settings or with /Applications/Whinge.app/Contents/Helpers/whinge install.

whinge [start] [--output DIR]
whinge attach
whinge stop | cancel | draw | clear | bug | status | last
whinge log [DIR] [--path]
whinge settings | install | version

start first listens for a start phrase, then records until Stop. --output DIR chooses the parent folder for this recording; without it, Whinge uses the location in Settings, initially Documents/Whinges.

attach waits for the active recording. cancel discards a recording or stops listening. last prints the newest saved folder. Exit status is 0 on success, 1 on failure and 2 on cancellation.

Watching a recording happen#

start and attach print one JSON object per line as things happen, so another program can follow a recording without waiting for it to end. A reader should ignore any event or key it doesn't recognise; more may be added.

{"event":"listening","phrase":"let's whinge"}
{"event":"started","dir":"/Users/you/Documents/Whinges/2026-09-23-114500"}
{"event":"transcript","t":6.8,"text":"the login form loses focus"}
{"event":"snapshot","t":9.1,"file":"snapshots/00009.10-1-clear.png","reason":"clear"}
{"event":"topic","t":12.4,"topic":2}
{"event":"saving"}
{"event":"finished","dir":"/Users/you/Documents/Whinges/2026-09-23-114500"}

t is seconds into the recording. file is relative to dir. The last line is always one of finished, cancelled or failed.

Other apps, including Offsider, can launch whinge start --output DIR and read the finished line for the saved folder.