[Bug/Feature] Fix IME input for Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, Korean (character loss)

[d-init-d]

Summary

Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and other IME input methods experience character loss when typing in Claude Code. This is a critical usability issue affecting millions of developers in Asia.

Problem Description

When typing with IME (Input Method Editor), characters are lost or duplicated:

Typing "xin chào" (Vietnamese for "hello"):
❌ Current: "xin cho" or "xin hào" (missing/wrong characters)
✅ Expected: "xin chào"

Root Cause

Claude Code uses React Ink for terminal UI. React Ink's useInput hook processes each keystroke immediately without waiting for IME composition to complete.

Related Issues:

• # Bug Report: Vietnamese Input Not Working in Claude Code CLI #10429 - Vietnamese Input Not Working
• Investigation: Fixing IME Issues in Claude Code by Patching React Ink / React Inkのパッチによる Claude Code のIME問題修正について #3045 - IME Investigation
• [BUG] error typing Vietnamese telex #7989 - Vietnamese Telex Error
• Input Lag, Characters Drop and Cursor position issue in languages using IME(CJK) vadimdemedes/ink#759 - CJK IME Input Issues

Solutions

I've created multiple solutions to address this:

1. React Ink PR (Root Cause Fix)

PR: vadimdemedes/ink#865

This adds IME composition buffering to React Ink's useInput hook. Once merged, all Ink-based apps (including Claude Code) will benefit.

2. terminal-ime-proxy (Immediate Workaround)

Package: https://github.com/d-init-d/terminal-ime-proxy
npm: terminal-ime-proxy (pending publish)

A standalone tool that wraps Claude Code and fixes IME input:

npm install -g terminal-ime-proxy
timp claude  # Run Claude Code with IME fix

How it works:

1. Intercepts keyboard input
2. Detects IME characters
3. Buffers composition
4. Sends complete characters to Claude Code

Proposed Fix for Claude Code

If you'd like to fix this directly in Claude Code, here's the approach:

1. Option A: Wait for React Ink PR to be merged and update dependency

2. Option B: Create a custom IMETextInput component that buffers input:

// Pseudocode for IMETextInput
const IMETextInput = ({ value, onChange }) => {
  const [buffer, setBuffer] = useState('');
  const timeoutRef = useRef(null);

  useInput((input, key) => {
    if (isIMEInput(input)) {
      // Buffer IME input
      setBuffer(prev => prev + input);
      clearTimeout(timeoutRef.current);
      timeoutRef.current = setTimeout(() => {
        onChange(value + buffer);
        setBuffer('');
      }, 50);
    } else {
      // Flush buffer and handle regular input
      if (buffer) {
        onChange(value + buffer);
        setBuffer('');
      }
      // Handle regular input
    }
  });
};

Affected Languages

Language	Input Methods	Users Affected
Vietnamese	Telex, VNI, VIQR	~97 million
Chinese	Pinyin, Wubi	~1 billion+
Japanese	Romaji	~125 million
Korean	Hangul	~80 million
Thai	Standard	~70 million

Environment

• OS: Windows 11
• Terminal: Windows Terminal
• IME: Unikey (Vietnamese Telex)
• Claude Code: Latest version

Workaround (Current)

Until this is fixed, users can use the terminal-ime-proxy tool:

npm install -g terminal-ime-proxy
timp claude

Request

Please consider:

1. Monitoring the React Ink PR and updating when merged
2. Or implementing an internal fix using the approach above

Thank you for your attention to this accessibility issue!

[0x0a0d]

xài https://github.com/0x0a0d/fix-vietnamese-claude-code fix được claude bên npm nha

[d-init-d]

@0x0a0d Dùng ngon luôn bác ơi, cảm ơn bác nhiều nha😁

[cirospaciari]

This has been fixed. IME input for Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean no longer loses characters during composition.

[github-actions]

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