Project ideas from Hacker News discussions.

Zed Editor Theme-Builder

Original Article

Hacker News Discussion

📝 Discussion Summary (Click to expand)

3 Prevalent Themes

Theme	Supporting quotations
Insufficient high‑contrast dark themes	“This feels shallow, but one of the biggest things keeping me from using zed is the lack of a good default dark theme.” – MeetingsBrowser “It's not just you and it's not just Zed. Dark themes tend to be low contrast gray on gray.” – jeorb
Desire for smooth, high‑resolution scrolling	“Scrolling should have a smooth option, nothing prevents it, it should be super easy to add, I find it easier on the eyes when I move around code, especially on a 240Hz monitor.” – stephc_int13 “Scrolling is perfectly smooth when you use a trackpad. IMO, clickwheels are a legacy technology for scrolling.” – LoganDark
Need for richer theme customisation & UI colour control	“The inspector is a game changer, clicking into these specific things in the preview they provide is super helpful.” – thecatapps “pointlessone: A feature request of sorts. An option to reveal and highlight the element the color is for would be cool.” – pointlessone

🚀 Project Ideas

Generating project ideas…

[Zed Theme Studio]

Summary

[Zed users struggle with low‑contrast default dark themes, leading to disengagement.]
[Provides a live‑preview theme builder with high‑contrast, shareable presets to instantly improve the editor’s visual appeal.]

Details

Key	Value
Target Audience	Zed developers, power users, and teams seeking polished UI
Core Feature	Real‑time theme editor with contrast sliders, color‑token preview, and one‑click export to `.toml`/`json`
Tech Stack	React + Vite front‑end, Node.js/Express API, SQLite DB, WebGL for rendering code snippets
Difficulty	Medium
Monetization	Revenue-ready: Freemium (free basic builder, $7/mo for premium theme packs & analytics)

Notes

[HN commenters repeatedly asked for “high‑contrast dark themes” and complained about “gray on gray”; this directly addresses that.]
[The service can host a public gallery, enabling community sharing and reducing friction for users who want ready‑made themes.]
[Potential for discussion on theme standards and integration into Zed’s core theme system.]

[SmoothScroll Enhancer for Zed]

Summary

[Smooth scrolling remains a missing native feature in Zed, especially for trackpad and mouse wheel users.]
[Adds a high‑resolution, configurable smooth‑scroll engine via a lightweight native plugin.]

Details

Key	Value
Target Audience	Zed users on macOS and Windows who use trackpads or high‑DPI mice and desire fluid navigation
Core Feature	Native daemon that intercepts scroll events and renders interpolated frames, exposed via UI toggle and API
Tech Stack	Rust binary (plugin architecture), platform‑specific APIs (macOS Quartz, Windows Win32)
Difficulty	High
Monetization	Hobby

Notes

[Threaded discussion shows frustration (“scrolling is a legacy input”) and references to Amiga-era smooth scrolling, indicating strong demand.]
[Integration could be marketed as an “accessibility + aesthetic” improvement, appealing to power users and streamers.]
[Potential for discussion on adopting existing OS‑level smooth‑scroll APIs vs. custom implementation.]

[Zed Theme Hub]

Summary

[Zed lacks a curated, searchable collection of community‑made themes, making discovery cumbersome.]
[Provides a web hub where users can browse, preview, and install themes with one click, including high‑contrast packs.]

Details

Key	Value
Target Audience	Zed newcomers, theme enthusiasts, and developers wanting to share custom designs
Core Feature	Theme marketplace with preview thumbnails, rating system, and direct “Install” button that updates local config
Tech Stack	Next.js front‑end, GraphQL API, PostgreSQL, Docker deployment; integration via Zed’s `extensions` API
Difficulty	Medium
Monetization	Revenue-ready: Revenue‑share model (15% of paid theme sales, optional $3/mo “Pro Curator” subscription)

Notes

[Users mention wanting a “Theme gallery” and express difficulty finding good themes; the hub solves discovery friction.]
[The one‑click install aligns with VSCode’s extension model and would likely be praised on HN.]
[Opportunity for community discussion around theme standards, versioning, and licensing.]