diff --git a/cheat b/cheat
index bfd5b78..6d9bb97 100755
--- a/cheat
+++ b/cheat
@@ -3,9 +3,21 @@ import os
 import sys
 
 DEFAULT_CHEAT_DIR = os.path.join(os.path.expanduser('~'), '.cheat')
+USE_PYGMENTS      = False
+
+# NOTE remove this check if it is confirmed to work on windows
+if os.name == 'posix':
+    try:
+        from pygments import highlight
+        from pygments.util import ClassNotFound
+        from pygments.lexers import get_lexer_for_filename, TextLexer
+        from pygments.formatters import TerminalFormatter
+        USE_PYGMENTS = True
+    except ImportError:
+        pass
 
-# assembles a list of directories containing cheatsheets
 def cheat_directories():
+    "Assembles a list of directories containing cheatsheets."
     default_directories = [DEFAULT_CHEAT_DIR]
     try:
         import cheatsheets
@@ -13,26 +25,29 @@ def cheat_directories():
     except ImportError:
         pass
 
-    default = [ default_dir for default_dir in default_directories if os.path.isdir(default_dir) ]
+    default = [default_dir for default_dir in default_directories
+               if os.path.isdir(default_dir)]
+
     if 'CHEATPATH' in os.environ and os.environ['CHEATPATH']:
-        return [ path for path in os.environ['CHEATPATH'].split(os.pathsep)\
-                if os.path.isdir(path) ] + default
+        return [path for path in os.environ['CHEATPATH'].split(os.pathsep)
+                if os.path.isdir(path)] + default
     else:
         return default
 
-# assembles a dictionary of cheatsheets found in the above directories
+
 def cheat_files(cheat_directories):
+    "Assembles a dictionary of cheatsheets found in the above directories."
     cheats = {}
     for cheat_dir in reversed(cheat_directories):
-        cheats.update(dict([ (cheat, cheat_dir)\
-                for cheat in os.listdir(cheat_dir) if '.' not in cheat ]))
+        cheats.update(dict([(cheat, cheat_dir)
+                            for cheat in os.listdir(cheat_dir)
+                            if '.' not in cheat]))
     return cheats
 
-def main():
-    """MAIN"""
 
+def main():
     # assemble a keyphrase out of all params passed to the script
-    keyphrase  = ' '.join(sys.argv[1:])
+    keyphrase = ' '.join(sys.argv[1:])
     cheat_dirs = cheat_directories()
 
     # verify that we have at least one cheat directory
@@ -48,20 +63,43 @@ def main():
     if keyphrase.lower() in ['', 'cheat', 'help', '-h', '-help', '--help']:
         print "Usage: cheat [keyphrase]\n"
         print "Available keyphrases:"
-        max_command = max([ len(x) for x in cheatsheets.keys() ]) + 3
-        print '\n'.join(sorted([ '%s [%s]' % (key.ljust(max_command), value)\
-                for key, value in cheatsheets.items() ]))
+        max_command = max([len(x) for x in cheatsheets.keys()]) + 3
+        print '\n'.join(sorted(['%s [%s]' % (key.ljust(max_command), value)
+                                for key, value in cheatsheets.items()]))
         exit()
 
     # print the cheatsheet if it exists
     if keyphrase in cheatsheets:
-        with open (os.path.join(cheatsheets[keyphrase], keyphrase), 'r')\
-                as cheatsheet:
-            print cheatsheet.read()
+        filename = os.path.join(cheatsheets[keyphrase], keyphrase)
+        if USE_PYGMENTS:
+            pretty_print(filename)
+        else:
+            with open(filename) as istream:
+                for l in istream:
+                    sys.stdout.write(l)
 
     # if it does not, say so
     else:
         print 'No cheatsheet found for %s.' % keyphrase
 
+
+def pretty_print(filename):
+    try:
+        if os.path.splitext(filename)[1]:
+            lexer = get_lexer_for_filename(filename)
+        else:
+            # shell is a sensible default when there is no extension
+            lexer = get_lexer_for_filename(filename + '.sh')
+
+    except ClassNotFound:
+        lexer = TextLexer()
+
+    with open(filename) as istream:
+        code = istream.read()
+
+    fmt = TerminalFormatter()
+    highlight(code, lexer, fmt, sys.stdout)
+
+
 if __name__ == '__main__':
     main()
diff --git a/cheatsheets/apt-cache b/cheatsheets/apt-cache
index 9a0e02b..933212b 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/apt-cache
+++ b/cheatsheets/apt-cache
@@ -1,2 +1,2 @@
-To search for apt packages:
+# To search for apt packages:
 apt-cache search "whatever"
diff --git a/cheatsheets/asterisk b/cheatsheets/asterisk
index f0cf107..df2c02b 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/asterisk
+++ b/cheatsheets/asterisk
@@ -1,17 +1,17 @@
-To connect to a running Asterisk session:
+# To connect to a running Asterisk session:
 asterisk -rvvv
 
-To issue a command to Asterisk from the shell:
+# To issue a command to Asterisk from the shell:
 asterisk -rx "<command>"
 
-To originate an echo call from a SIP trunk on an Asterisk server, to a specified number:
+# To originate an echo call from a SIP trunk on an Asterisk server, to a specified number:
 asterisk -rx "channel originate SIP/<trunk>/<number> application echo"
 
-To print out the details of SIP accounts:
+# To print out the details of SIP accounts:
 asterisk -rx "sip show peers"
 
-To print out the passwords of SIP accounts:
+# To print out the passwords of SIP accounts:
 asterisk -rx "sip show users"
 
-To print out the current active channels:
+# To print out the current active channels:
 asterisk -rx "core show channels"
diff --git a/cheatsheets/bash b/cheatsheets/bash
index 1d024ca..340158e 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/bash
+++ b/cheatsheets/bash
@@ -1,10 +1,10 @@
-To implement a for loop:
+# To implement a for loop:
 for file in `ls .`;
     do echo 'file';
     echo 'found';
 done
 
-To implement a case command:
+# To implement a case command:
 case "$1"
 in
     0) echo "zero found";;
diff --git a/cheatsheets/convert b/cheatsheets/convert
index 25bc8ed..20dbef0 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/convert
+++ b/cheatsheets/convert
@@ -1,17 +1,17 @@
-To resize an image to a fixed width and proportional height:
+# To resize an image to a fixed width and proportional height:
 convert original-image.jpg -resize 100x converted-image.jpg
 
-To resize an image to a fixed height and proportional width:
+# To resize an image to a fixed height and proportional width:
 convert original-image.jpg -resize x100 converted-image.jpg
 
-To resize an image to a fixed width and height:
+# To resize an image to a fixed width and height:
 convert original-image.jpg -resize 100x100 converted-image.jpg
 
-To resize an image and simultaneously change its file type:
+# To resize an image and simultaneously change its file type:
 convert original-image.jpg -resize 100x converted-image.png
 
-To resize all of the images within a directory:
-To implement a for loop:
+# To resize all of the images within a directory:
+# To implement a for loop:
 for file in `ls original/image/path/`;
     do new_path=${file%.*};
     new_file=`basename $new_path`;
diff --git a/cheatsheets/cut b/cheatsheets/cut
index 442aa39..1e7939f 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/cut
+++ b/cheatsheets/cut
@@ -1,2 +1,2 @@
-To cut out the third field of text or stdoutput that is delimited by a #:
+# To cut out the third field of text or stdoutput that is delimited by a #:
 cut -d# -f3
diff --git a/cheatsheets/dhclient b/cheatsheets/dhclient
index 6ac0750..028530e 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/dhclient
+++ b/cheatsheets/dhclient
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
-To release the current IP address:
+# To release the current IP address:
 sudo dhclient -r
 
-To obtain a new IP address:
+# To obtain a new IP address:
 sudo dhclient
 
-Running the above in sequence is a common way of refreshing an IP.
+# Running the above in sequence is a common way of refreshing an IP.
diff --git a/cheatsheets/find b/cheatsheets/find
index 0e99e3c..a78583a 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/find
+++ b/cheatsheets/find
@@ -1,14 +1,14 @@
-To find files by extension (ex: .jpg):
+# To find files by extension (ex: .jpg):
 find . -iname "*.jpg"
 
-To find directories:
+# To find directories:
 find . -type d
 
-To find files:
+# To find files:
 find . -type f
 
-To find files by octal permission:
+# To find files by octal permission:
 find . -type f -perm 777
 
-To find files with setuid bit set:
+# To find files with setuid bit set:
 find . -xdev \( -perm -4000 \) -type f -print0 | xargs -0 ls -l
diff --git a/cheatsheets/git b/cheatsheets/git
index efba67e..ddb7946 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/git
+++ b/cheatsheets/git
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
-To set your identify:
+# To set your identify:
 git config --global user.name "John Doe"
 git config --global user.email johndoe@example.com
 
-To enable color:
+# To enable color:
 git config --global color.ui true
diff --git a/cheatsheets/ln b/cheatsheets/ln
index ab95c66..441c3a9 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/ln
+++ b/cheatsheets/ln
@@ -1,2 +1,2 @@
-To create a symlink:
+# To create a symlink:
 ln -s path/to/the/target/directory name-of-symlink
diff --git a/cheatsheets/mysqldump b/cheatsheets/mysqldump
index 0b22002..7652efa 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/mysqldump
+++ b/cheatsheets/mysqldump
@@ -1,8 +1,8 @@
-To dump a database to a file:
+# To dump a database to a file:
 mysqldump -uusername -ppassword the-database > db.sql
 
-To dump a database to a .tgz file:
+# To dump a database to a .tgz file:
 mysqldump -uusername -ppassword the-database | gzip -9 > db.sql
 
-To dump all databases to a file:
+# To dump all databases to a file:
 mysqldump -uusername -ppassword --all-databases > all-databases.sql
diff --git a/cheatsheets/netstat b/cheatsheets/netstat
index 863788b..dbf6ae4 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/netstat
+++ b/cheatsheets/netstat
@@ -1,2 +1,2 @@
-To view which users/processes are listening to which ports:
+# To view which users/processes are listening to which ports:
 sudo netstat -lnptu
diff --git a/cheatsheets/nmap b/cheatsheets/nmap
index 61c58c6..7620afd 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/nmap
+++ b/cheatsheets/nmap
@@ -1,33 +1,33 @@
-Single target scan:
+# Single target scan:
 nmap [target]
 
-Scan from a list of targets:
+# Scan from a list of targets:
 nmap -iL [list.txt]
 
-iPv6:
+# iPv6:
 nmap -6 [target]
 
-OS detection:
+# OS detection:
 nmap -O [target]
 
-Save output to text file:
+# Save output to text file:
 nmap -oN [output.txt] [target]
 
-Save output to xml file:
+# Save output to xml file:
 nmap -oX [output.xml] [target]
 
-Scan a specific port:
+# Scan a specific port:
 nmap -source-port [port] [target]
 
-Do an aggressive scan:
+# Do an aggressive scan:
 nmap -A [target]
 
-Traceroute:
+# Traceroute:
 nmap -traceroute [target]
 
-Ping scan only: -sP
-Don't ping:     -PN
-TCP SYN ping:   -PS
-TCP ACK ping:   -PA
-UDP ping:       -PU
-ARP ping:       -PR
+# Ping scan only: -sP
+# Don't ping:     -PN
+# TCP SYN ping:   -PS
+# TCP ACK ping:   -PA
+# UDP ping:       -PU
+# ARP ping:       -PR
diff --git a/cheatsheets/notify-send b/cheatsheets/notify-send
index 2722f67..6516064 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/notify-send
+++ b/cheatsheets/notify-send
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-To send a desktop notification via dbus:
+# To send a desktop notification via dbus:
 notify-send -i 'icon-file/name' -a 'application_name' 'summary' 'body of message'
 
-The -i and -a flags can be omitted if unneeded.
+# The -i and -a flags can be omitted if unneeded.
diff --git a/cheatsheets/openssl b/cheatsheets/openssl
index 9c47806..936d953 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/openssl
+++ b/cheatsheets/openssl
@@ -1,10 +1,10 @@
-To create a 2048-bit private key:
+# To create a 2048-bit private key:
 openssl genrsa -out server.key 2048
 
-To create the Certificate Signing Request (CSR):
+# To create the Certificate Signing Request (CSR):
 openssl req -new -key server.key -out server.csr
 
-To sign a certificate using a private key and CSR:
+# To sign a certificate using a private key and CSR:
 openssl x509 -req -days 365 -in server.csr -signkey server.key -out server.crt
 
-(The above commands may be run in sequence to generate a self-signed SSL certificate.)
+# (The above commands may be run in sequence to generate a self-signed SSL certificate.)
diff --git a/cheatsheets/scp b/cheatsheets/scp
index abb8176..5b5ade9 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/scp
+++ b/cheatsheets/scp
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
-To copy a file from your local machine to a remote server:
+# To copy a file from your local machine to a remote server:
 scp foo.txt user@example.com:remote/dir
 
-To copy a file from a remote server to your local machine:
-scp user@example.com:remote/dir/foo.txt local/dir
\ No newline at end of file
+# To copy a file from a remote server to your local machine:
+scp user@example.com:remote/dir/foo.txt local/dir
diff --git a/cheatsheets/shred b/cheatsheets/shred
index 3aa3300..3962082 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/shred
+++ b/cheatsheets/shred
@@ -1,13 +1,13 @@
-To shred a file (5 passes) and verbose output:
+# To shred a file (5 passes) and verbose output:
 shred -n 5 -v file.txt
 
-To shred a file (5 passes) and a final overwrite of zeroes:
+# To shred a file (5 passes) and a final overwrite of zeroes:
 shred -n 5 -vz file.txt
 
-To do the above, and then truncate and rm the file:
+# To do the above, and then truncate and rm the file:
 shred -n 5 -vzu file.txt
 
-To shred a partition:
+# To shred a partition:
 shred -n 5 -vz /dev/sda
 
-Remember that shred may not behave as expected on journaled file systems if file data is being journaled.
+# Remember that shred may not behave as expected on journaled file systems if file data is being journaled.
diff --git a/cheatsheets/sockstat b/cheatsheets/sockstat
index cff34e2..21594fd 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/sockstat
+++ b/cheatsheets/sockstat
@@ -1,2 +1,2 @@
-To view which users/processes are listening to which ports:
+# To view which users/processes are listening to which ports:
 sudo sockstat -l
diff --git a/cheatsheets/split b/cheatsheets/split
index 62a9427..8ffd1f3 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/split
+++ b/cheatsheets/split
@@ -1,8 +1,8 @@
-To split a large text file into smaller files of 1000 lines each:
+# To split a large text file into smaller files of 1000 lines each:
 split file.txt -l 1000
 
-To split a large binary file into smaller files of 10M each:
+# To split a large binary file into smaller files of 10M each:
 split file.txt -b 10M
 
-To consolidate split files into a single file: 
+# To consolidate split files into a single file:
 cat x* > file.txt
diff --git a/cheatsheets/ssh b/cheatsheets/ssh
index 6099196..72681d7 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/ssh
+++ b/cheatsheets/ssh
@@ -1,11 +1,11 @@
-To execute a command on a remote server:
+# To execute a command on a remote server:
 ssh -t user@example.com 'the-remote-command'
 
-To tunnel an x session over SSH:
+# To tunnel an x session over SSH:
 ssh -X user@example.com
 
-To launch a specific x application over SSH:
+# To launch a specific x application over SSH:
 ssh -X -t user@example.com 'chromium-browser'
 
-For more information, see:
-http://unix.stackexchange.com/q/12755/44856
+# For more information, see:
+# http://unix.stackexchange.com/q/12755/44856
diff --git a/cheatsheets/ssh-copy-id b/cheatsheets/ssh-copy-id
index 1a241b7..217479c 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/ssh-copy-id
+++ b/cheatsheets/ssh-copy-id
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
-To copy a key to a remote host:
+# To copy a key to a remote host:
 ssh-copy-id username@host
 
-To copy a key to a remote host on a non-standard port:
+# To copy a key to a remote host on a non-standard port:
 ssh-copy-id username@host -p 2222
diff --git a/cheatsheets/ssh-keygen b/cheatsheets/ssh-keygen
index 32986ba..5d9266d 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/ssh-keygen
+++ b/cheatsheets/ssh-keygen
@@ -1,11 +1,11 @@
-To generate an SSH key:
+# To generate an SSH key:
 ssh-keygen -t rsa
 
-To generate a 4096-bit SSH key:
+# To generate a 4096-bit SSH key:
 ssh-keygen -t rsa -b 4096
 
-To copy a key to a remote host:
+# To copy a key to a remote host:
 ssh-copy-id username@host
 
-To copy a key to a remote host on a non-standard port:
+# To copy a key to a remote host on a non-standard port:
 ssh-copy-id username@host -p 2222
diff --git a/cheatsheets/stdout b/cheatsheets/stdout
index e1a8f57..bff788a 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/stdout
+++ b/cheatsheets/stdout
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
-To redirect stderr to stdout:
+# To redirect stderr to stdout:
 some-command 2>&1
 
-To redirect stderr to a file
+# To redirect stderr to a file
 some-command 2> errors.txt
diff --git a/cheatsheets/tar b/cheatsheets/tar
index a0f7a41..ab082db 100644
--- a/cheatsheets/tar
+++ b/cheatsheets/tar
@@ -1,17 +1,17 @@
-To extract an uncompressed archive: 
+# To extract an uncompressed archive:
 tar -xvf /path/to/foo.tar
 
-To create an uncompressed archive: 
+# To create an uncompressed archive:
 tar -cvf /path/to/foo.tar /path/to/foo/
 
-To extract a .gz archive:
+# To extract a .gz archive:
 tar -xzvf /path/to/foo.tgz
 
-To create a .gz archive:
+# To create a .gz archive:
 tar -czvf /path/to/foo.tgz /path/to/foo/
 
-To extract a .bz2 archive:
+# To extract a .bz2 archive:
 tar -xjvf /path/to/foo.tgz
 
-To create a .bz2 archive:
+# To create a .bz2 archive:
 tar -cjvf /path/to/foo.tgz /path/to/foo/
diff --git a/setup.py b/setup.py
index af240f9..f4fd1c8 100644
--- a/setup.py
+++ b/setup.py
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ import os
 
 setup(name='cheat',
       version='1.0',
-      description='Create and view interactive cheatsheets on the command-line',
+      description='Create and view interactive cheatsheets on the command-line',  # nopep8
       author='Chris Lane',
       author_email='chris@chris-allen-lane.com',
       url='https://github.com/chrisallenlane/cheat',