Input Modes: Command vs Ask

CommandUI has two input paths. Both use the same composer at the bottom of the screen.

Command mode

Press Ctrl+1 or click the Command button.

Your text is sent directly to the shell as a raw command. No AI translation, no plan panel, no confirmation step. The command executes immediately in the active session’s PTY.

When to use: you know the exact command. git status, npm test, docker ps. Command mode is the terminal you already know.

What happens:

1. You type a command and press Enter
2. The command executes in the shell
3. Output streams to the terminal
4. A history item is created with status success/failure and exit code

Ask mode

Press Ctrl+2 or click the Ask button.

Your text is treated as natural language intent. The planner translates it into a shell command and presents a plan for review.

When to use: you know what you want but not the exact syntax. “Find all TypeScript files modified today.” “Show disk usage sorted by size.” “Kill the process on port 3000.”

What happens:

1. You describe your intent and press Enter
2. The planner generates a CommandPlan with: command, explanation, risk, assumptions
3. The plan panel opens on the right side
4. You review and choose: Run Plan, edit the command, Reject, or Save Workflow
5. If approved, the command executes in the shell
6. History records both the original intent and the executed command

The explicit toggle

CommandUI never auto-detects which mode you meant. The toggle is always visible and always manual. This is intentional:

• You are never surprised by AI involvement
• Raw commands are never intercepted for “interpretation”
• The system boundary between human input and AI output is always clear

Composer behavior

The composer textarea supports:

• Enter to submit
• Escape to clear pending state
• Text persists when switching between modes (your draft is not lost)

When a command is running, the composer shows an Interrupt button instead of Run.

Direct terminal typing

You can also type directly into the terminal area (click or focus it). Keystrokes go straight to the PTY — this is classic terminal behavior. Direct typing is not tracked in the structured history (it bypasses the composer).