[idea] goto navigator should open with filter/search active by default

[AndrewCloete]

idea / problem

When managing many workspaces, the primary reason to open the navigator is to jump somewhere by name. Having to press / first adds friction to what is otherwise a fast keyboard-driven flow.

requested change

When opening the session navigator with prefix+g, the UI opens in navigation mode and requires an additional / keypress to start filtering. It would be great if the navigator could open directly in search mode, so typing immediately filters the list without the extra step.

Proposed config option:

toml[keys]
goto_search_on_open = true

Or alternatively, a dedicated binding that opens goto pre-focused on the search field:

toml[[keys.command]]
key = "prefix+g"
type = "goto_search"

why you want this

Opening in search mode by default (or as an option) would make it feel closer to fuzzy launchers like fzf or Telescope, where the prompt is immediately active.

[estin]

Currently I'm use the following workaround: herdr plugin + fuzzel

plugin

cat ~/.config/herdr/plugins/fuzzy-workspace/herdr-plugin.toml

id = "local.fuzzy-workspace"
name = "Fuzzy Workspace Chooser"
version = "0.1.0"
min_herdr_version = "0.7.0"
description = "Fuzzy choose and switch workspaces."
platforms = ["linux"]

[[actions]]
id = "choose"
title = "Fuzzy Choose Workspace"
contexts = ["workspace"]
description = "Launch fuzzel to pick a workspace"
command = ["nu", "/home/user/.config/herdr/plugins/fuzzy-workspace/choose.nu"]

cat ~/.config/herdr/plugins/fuzzy-workspace/choose.nu

#!/usr/bin/env nu

let workspaces = (
  herdr workspace list
  | from json
  | get result.workspaces
)

let selected_label = (
  $workspaces
  | get label
  | str join (char nl)
  | fuzzel --dmenu --prompt "Select Workspace> "
  | str trim
)

if $selected_label != "" {
  let workspace_id = (
    $workspaces
    | where label == $selected_label
    | get 0.workspace_id
  )
  herdr workspace focus $workspace_id
}

Install

herdr plugin link ~/.config/herdr/plugins/fuzzy-workspace --enabled

Add keybinding

[[keys.command]]
command = "local.fuzzy-workspace.choose"
description = "Fuzzy choose workspace"
key = "prefix+s"
type = "plugin_action"

Result

[robertshawjmark]

Bumping this.

I'm a long-time tmux user who recently migrated to herdr. Overall the transition has been remarkably smooth given tmux's quirks. This is really the one pain point I've hit.
I appreciate herdr's opinionated design but I think the UX suffers here. When an action opens a navigation window, the user's intent is to navigate somewhere, and the primary way to do that in this window is via the keyboard:

So it feels intuitive to be able to just start typing into the search bar.

I understand this isn't the default because standard keyboard keys are already used to navigate agent states. There would be a conflict here. Like @AndrewCloete suggested above, I'd propose one of two approaches:

1. Use a leader/prefix combination for agent-state navigation (e.g. ⁠leader b, ⁠leader w) freeing up direct typing for search.

2. Expose a keybinding to remap the search shortcut away from ⁠/.

The friction with ⁠/ is that it typically sits in the bottom-right of default keyboard layouts, making it an awkward keystroke that contributes to emacs pinky.

Solving this via config extension could work but I'd personally avoid it to prevent functionality branching based on the environment.
I think the keybinding or leader approach might be a cleaner solution. Just my opinion though!

This is the only thing holding me back from full adoption. Great tool otherwise!