Bash script that opens Twitch video player and chat pop-out using your default browser. No clutter. Just re-sizable pop-out windows.

gistfile1.txt

#!/usr/bin/env bash

if [[ $# -eq 0 ]]; then
    echo "Usage: twitch channel1 channel2 ..."
    exit 1
fi

# --- Detect Default Browser ---
detect_default_browser() {
    local default_browser=""
    
    # Try xdg-settings first (most common method)
    if command -v xdg-settings &>/dev/null; then
        default_browser=$(xdg-settings get default-web-browser 2>/dev/null | sed 's/.desktop$//')
    fi
    
    # If xdg-settings didn't work, try update-alternatives (Debian/Ubuntu)
    if [[ -z "$default_browser" ]] && command -v update-alternatives &>/dev/null; then
        default_browser=$(update-alternatives --display x-www-browser 2>/dev/null | grep -m1 '/usr/bin/' | awk '{print $1}')
    fi
    
    # Map browser names to paths
    case "$default_browser" in
        *brave*)
            echo "/usr/bin/brave-browser" 2>/dev/null || echo "/usr/bin/brave"
            ;;
        *chrome*|*chromium*)
            if [[ -x /usr/bin/google-chrome ]]; then
                echo "/usr/bin/google-chrome"
            elif [[ -x /usr/bin/chromium ]]; then
                echo "/usr/bin/chromium"
            else
                echo "/usr/bin/google-chrome-stable"
            fi
            ;;
        *firefox*)
            echo "/usr/bin/firefox"
            ;;
        *edge*|*microsoft*)
            if [[ -x /usr/bin/microsoft-edge ]]; then
                echo "/usr/bin/microsoft-edge"
            else
                echo "/usr/bin/edge"
            fi
            ;;
        *)
            # Fallback: try to find any executable browser
            for path in "/usr/bin/brave-browser" "/usr/bin/brave" "/usr/bin/google-chrome" \
                        "/usr/bin/chromium" "/usr/bin/firefox" "/usr/bin/microsoft-edge"; do
                if [[ -x "$path" ]]; then
                    echo "$path"
                    return
                fi
            done
            ;;
    esac
}

BROWSER_CMD=$(detect_default_browser)

# Verify we found an executable browser
if [[ -z "$BROWSER_CMD" ]] || ! [[ -x "$BROWSER_CMD" ]]; then
    echo "Error: Could not detect or find a supported browser."
    echo "Please install Brave, Chrome, Firefox, Chromium, or Edge."
    exit 1
fi

echo "Using detected default browser: $(basename "$BROWSER_CMD")"

# --- Open URLs for each channel ---
for CHANNEL in "$@"; do
    STREAM_URL="https://player.twitch.tv/?channel=${CHANNEL}&parent=localhost"
    CHAT_URL="https://www.twitch.tv/popout/${CHANNEL}/chat"

    echo "Opening stream and chat for: ${CHANNEL}"

    # Open Stream
    "$BROWSER_CMD" --disable-gpu --no-first-run --app="${STREAM_URL}" &

    # Open Chat (small delay to ensure separate windows)
    sleep 0.5
    "$BROWSER_CMD" --disable-gpu --no-first-run --app="${CHAT_URL}" &

    # Small delay between channels to avoid overwhelming the browser
    sleep 0.5
done

echo "Done. All streams and chats opened."