TUI Layouts

KodaCode has two TUI layouts: shell and classic.

Shell is the default view. Classic remains available when you want a persistent side inspector.

Shell view

Shell view is a single-plane terminal workflow. It keeps the transcript, composer, status, workflow activity, and compact tool rows in one continuous surface.

Use shell view when you want:

• the most terminal-native flow
• less persistent chrome while a turn is running
• inline tool and workflow activity in the transcript
• a tools popup instead of a permanently open tools sidebar

Shell-specific controls:

Key	Action
t	Open the shell tools popup from normal transcript mode
Ctrl+T	Open the shell tools popup from insert or normal mode
T	Toggle inline shell tool rows
j / k	Move between visible non-mutation tool calls in normal transcript mode
Enter	Expand or open the selected tool call

Classic view

Classic view keeps a persistent inspector on the right side. The inspector has Details, Tools, and Tasks tabs and is designed for dense review, comparison, and post-turn inspection.

Use classic view when you want:

• a permanent tool/task/detail panel
• the full inspector visible while reading the transcript
• dashboard-style review of long tool traces
• tabbed navigation for details, tools, and task state

Classic-specific behavior:

Key	Action
h / l	Move between inspector tabs while the inspector is focused
j / k	Move between tools or tasks on their inspector tabs
Enter	Open the selected tool or task detail dialog
Ctrl+\	Focus or open the side panel; it does not hide the panel in classic view

Switching layouts

Use Ctrl+L to switch between shell and classic.

KodaCode persists that choice to ~/.config/kodacode/config.yaml, so the next restart opens in the layout you selected.

tui:
  layout: shell

Set layout: classic if you want the persistent side inspector by default. Leaving layout unset uses shell view.