[idea] option to move tab bar to the bottom

[smrnjeet222]

idea / problem

Tabs currently render at the top of the screen. Some users prefer the tab bar at the bottom (tmux-style), so the tab labels sit next to the shell prompt / typing area rather than at the top edge.

requested change

Add a config option to move the existing horizontal tab bar to the bottom, keeping top as the default. No left/right placement — just top vs bottom. e.g.

[ui]
# top (default) | bottom
tab_bar_position = "bottom"

top preserves current behavior; bottom renders the same tab bar at the bottom edge.

why you want this

• matches tmux muscle memory, where the tab/status line lives at the bottom
• keeps tab labels close to where typing happens, so the eye travels less between input and tabs

Environment: herdr 0.7.1, macOS. (Today the only position config is for toast popups under [ui.toast.herdr], not the tab bar.)

[maro114510]

@ogulcancelik

I’d like to take this on if the direction sounds good.
My understanding is that this would be a small client-TUI-only option with no CLI, API, or mobile layout changes.

Would you prefer this to be tracked as an accepted issue first, or is it okay for me to open a PR after approval?

[rmarganti]

I've been running a fork (with no intent to PR upstream) with this as a configuration option. It's a relatively simple implementation:
https://github.com/ogulcancelik/herdr/compare/master...rmarganti:herdr:feature/bottom-tab-bar?expand=1#diff-acf9ca25b7b2d13e11c1035ebbda4140466603739b73a371b67a9a267d0ce626R196-R207

However, I would give it some extra thought. Moving the tab bar to the bottom does have some UI/UX implications. Specifically, it starts to butt up against the mode bar that shows up when you are in prefix or resize mode

[borncrusader]

I don't think it's obtrusive but that might be a very subjective take.

[smrnjeet222]

@rmarganti thanks for the solution.
the overlay in fact looked out of place, I modified it to just cover on the tab-bar itself
smrnjeet222@4f33749

[eduardoarandah]

my editor has tabs so its visually confusing for me, it would be great having them at the bottom, tmux style

[magoz]

another vote for tab bar at the bottom.
I'm usually looking at the input area when i want to change tabs, so it's more ergonomic to have the tabs right there and not have to have go all the way up to check where we are.

[ogulcancelik]

moved to issue tracking phase #2117