powershell-ui-architect

PowerShell UI Architect

Purpose

Provides expertise in building graphical user interfaces (GUI) and terminal user interfaces (TUI) with PowerShell. Specializes in WinForms, WPF, and console-based TUI frameworks for creating user-friendly PowerShell tools.

When to Use

• Building PowerShell tools with GUI
• Creating WinForms applications
• Developing WPF interfaces for scripts
• Building terminal user interfaces (TUI)
• Adding dialogs to automation scripts
• Creating interactive admin tools
• Building configuration wizards
• Implementing progress displays

Quick Start

Invoke this skill when:

• Creating GUIs for PowerShell scripts
• Building WinForms or WPF interfaces
• Developing terminal-based UIs
• Adding interactive dialogs to tools
• Creating admin tool interfaces

Do NOT invoke when:

• Cross-platform CLI tools → use /cli-developer
• PowerShell module design → use /powershell-module-architect
• Web interfaces → use /frontend-design
• Windows app development (non-PS) → use /windows-app-developer

Decision Framework

UI Type Needed?
├── Simple Dialog
│   └── WinForms MessageBox / InputBox
├── Full Windows App
│   ├── Simple layout → WinForms
│   └── Rich UI → WPF with XAML
├── Console/Terminal
│   ├── Simple menu → Write-Host + Read-Host
│   └── Rich TUI → Terminal.Gui / PSReadLine
└── Cross-Platform
    └── Terminal-based only

Core Workflows

1. WinForms Application

1. Add System.Windows.Forms assembly
2. Create Form object
3. Add controls (buttons, text boxes)
4. Wire up event handlers
5. Configure layout
6. Show form with ShowDialog()

2. WPF Interface

1. Define XAML layout
2. Load XAML in PowerShell
3. Get control references
4. Add event handlers
5. Implement logic
6. Display window

3. TUI with Terminal.Gui

1. Install Terminal.Gui module
2. Initialize application
3. Create window and views
4. Add controls (buttons, lists, text)
5. Handle events
6. Run main loop

Best Practices

• Keep UI code separate from logic
• Use XAML for complex WPF layouts
• Handle errors gracefully with user feedback
• Provide progress indication for long operations
• Test on target Windows versions
• Use appropriate UI for audience (GUI vs TUI)

Anti-Patterns

Anti-Pattern	Problem	Correct Approach
UI logic mixed with business logic	Hard to maintain	Separate concerns
Blocking UI thread	Frozen interface	Use runspaces/jobs
No input validation	Crashes, bad data	Validate before use
Hardcoded sizes	Scaling issues	Use anchoring/docking
No error messages	Confused users	Friendly error dialogs