[Feature Request] Floating Window Support

[sainnhe]

It will be very cool if tmux can support floating window like neovim!

Here are related designs:

• neovim -- floating window
• vim -- popup window

I do believe that floating window in tmux will be very useful.

For example, we can use it to develop

• a translation plugin that shows the translation results in "floating window"
• a plugin that allows you to quickly view the man page of current command in "floating window"
• a plugin that can manage git branch, browse git commit, and more with git!
• a plugin using zui to create a dashboard in "floating window"

[nicm]

We are not going to do permanent floating windows, but popups with text wouldn't be particularly hard to implement using the existing overlay mechanism - take a look at how menus work.

[nicm]

Added to todo.

[lock]

This thread has been automatically locked since there has not been any recent activity after it was closed. Please open a new issue for related bugs.

[nicm]

Please try this: tmux-popup.diff.txt

It adds a command, display-popup.

-x -y -w -h flags set position and size. -x and -y are the same as display-menu with the addition of C for centre of the window. -w and -h take a number or H or Q for half or quarter of the window size.

The first argument is a tmux command to run when a key is pressed, the #{popup_key} format is set to the key.

The second and subsequent arguments are lines of text to show.

The -R flag gives a command to run. If this is given, its output is shown after any lines of text. -d gives the starting working directory.

For example:

tmux popup -xC -yC -wH -hH -d '#{pane_current_path}' -R make
tmux popup -xC -yC -w70 -hH -R 'ping 127.0.0.1'
tmux popup -xC -yC -wQ -hQ 'display -p "#{popup_key}"' '#[bg=red]hello'

Note that the command can use escape sequences for colour and whatnot but is not run in a pty so interactive programs won't work. The line arguments can't use escape sequences and must use tmux styles.

However I'm not sure if I will apply it, at least not yet:

• I don't like the name popup and "floating window" is too long, and anyway we use window for something different.

• I'm not convinced the use cases are compelling compared with just creating a new pane or window, and there is no obvious use for this by tmux itself.

[nicm]

Here is an updated diff: tmux-popup2.diff.txt

Which changes how it works with the -R command:

• Without -K or without a -R command, key presses fire the tmux command in the first argument and close the popup.

• With -K, key presses are written to the -R command running in the popup if there is one. Escape and C-c close the popup or the command itself can close it with tmux popup -C.

• With -E the popup will automatically close when the command exits.

I'm not really convinced it is necessary to offer so much...

[nicm]

Here is another update that uses a pty for the -R command, so you can - for example - scroll in man(1): tmux-popup3.diff.txt

tmux popup -xC -yC -wH -hH -R 'man man'  -K -E

[nicm]

Latest with some fixes: tmux-popup4.diff.txt

[kevinhwang91]

Latest with some fixes: tmux-popup4.diff.txt

I'm extremely interested in this floating or popup feature and can't wait to test it.
Could you create a branch of this patch? I don't know which commit I should make these patches.

[nicm]

Use latest patch and apply to master.

[nicm]

git clone https://github.com/tmux/tmux.git
cd tmux
wget https://github.com/tmux/tmux/files/4358424/tmux-popup4.diff.txt
git apply tmux-popup4.diff.txt
sh autogen.sh
./configure
make
./tmux new

[kevinhwang91]

git apply tmux-popup4.diff.txt

When I use make, It outputs the below errors.

mv -f $depbase.Tpo $depbase.Po
make: *** No rule to make target 'popup.c', needed by 'popup.o'.  Stop.

It seems that it's missing popup.c.

[nicm]

Ah I must have forgotten to add it, one minute.

…

On Fri, 20 Mar 2020, 13:23 kevinhwang91, ***@***.***> wrote: git apply tmux-popup4.diff.txt When I using make, It outputs the below errors. mv -f $depbase.Tpo $depbase.Po make: *** No rule to make target 'popup.c', needed by 'popup.o'. Stop. I seems that it missing popup.c. — You are receiving this because you modified the open/close state. Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <#1842 (comment)>, or unsubscribe <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AACKI42VJCDB2I3ZLMMSPYLRINU3VANCNFSM4IEJKDCA> .