Bundled TUI Code Editor
AdeshLang includes a lightning-fast, full-featured Terminal User Interface (TUI) Code Editor built directly into the toolchain. It provides a complete IDE experience directly inside your terminal with sub-5ms cold startup, zero graphical dependencies, and a memory footprint under 15 MB.
Looking for the Browser Version?
If you want an in-browser code editor without running a local terminal, check out the Online Web IDE (editor.adeshlang.org) which executes 100% in WebAssembly with Monaco editor and live diagnostics.
┌─ [File] [Edit] [View] [Run] [Info] ───────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 📁 EXPLORER │ main.adesh* ✕ │ math.adesh ✕ │
│ ▾ src/ │ 1 │ import { println } from "std:io"; │
│ ▸ net/ │ 2 │ import { JITCompiler } from "std:jit"; │
│ • app.adesh │ 3 │ │
│ • main.adesh │ 4 │ fn main(): int { │
│ ▾ tests/ │ 5 │ let numbers = [10, 20, 30, 40]; │
│ • jit_test │ 6 │ let total = numbers.reduce(fn(a, b) => a + b, 0); │
│ │ 7 │ println("Total: {total}"); │
│ │ 8 │ return 0; │
│ │ 9 │ } │
├────────────────┴─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ ⚡ RUNNER [Cranelift JIT] — Status: Success (exit 0) — Execution time: 1.42ms │
│ Total: 100 │
├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ NORMAL │ UTF-8 │ AdeshLang │ Ln 6, Col 24 │ Backend: Native JIT │ F5: Run │ Ctrl+P│
└───────────────────────────── ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Quick Launch
Launch the bundled editor using either the adesh editor subcommand or the standalone adesh-editor binary:
# Open editor in the current directory with workspace file explorer
adesh editor .
# Open a specific file
adesh editor src/main.adesh
# Open multiple files into separate buffer tabs
adesh editor src/main.adesh src/lib.adesh tests/bench.adesh
# Open directly with a specific execution backend
adesh editor --backend jit-native main.adesh
Architectural Highlights
- Native Rust Engine: Built on top of
ratatui(v0.26),crossterm(v0.27), andtokiomulti-threaded asynchronous runtime. - ALS Language Server Protocol: Embedded real-time diagnostics, type hover tooltips, code completion, and document formatting.
- Multi-Buffer Tab Bar: Seamlessly switch between open files, split views, and scratch buffers.
- Built-in Execution Runner: Execute your code directly within the editor using the Interpreter, Bytecode VM, Cranelift Native JIT, or Native AOT linker.
- Interactive Terminal & Output Panel: Test CLI commands and view live streaming execution output without leaving the editor.
- Fuzzy Command Palette: Quick access to all actions, files, themes, and configuration commands.
- Hybrid Input System: Supports both modern desktop shortcuts (
Ctrl+S,Ctrl+P,Ctrl+F) and classic modal navigation (Normal,Insert,Visual,Command-Line). - Mouse & Trackpad Support: Click to position cursor, select text by dragging, switch tabs, scroll with mouse wheel, and click top-bar menus.
User Interface Layout
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 1. Menu Bar (Alt+F, Alt+E, Alt+V, Alt+R, Alt+I) │
├──────────────┬──────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ │ 2. Buffer Tabs Bar (Ctrl+Tab, Alt+1..9) │
│ ├──────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 3. File Tree │ │
│ Explorer │ 4. Code Editor Pane │
│ (Ctrl+E) │ • Syntax highlighting │
│ │ • Line numbers (absolute/relative) │
│ │ • Diagnostic error/warning gutter markers │
│ │ │
├──────────────┴──────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 5. Execution Runner / Interactive Terminal Drawer (Ctrl+`, Ctrl+J) │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 6. Status Bar (Mode, Position, Backend, Git, Diagnostics) │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Editing Modes
The editor features a familiar modal architecture with intuitive transitions:
| Mode | Trigger | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Normal Mode | Esc | Rapid navigation, buffer manipulation, code jumping, and command execution. |
| Insert Mode | i, a, o, I, A | Standard text entry with auto-closing brackets, smart indent, and autocomplete popups. |
| Visual Mode | v (char) / V (line) | Text block selection for copying, cutting, formatting, and indentation shifts. |
| Command-Line Mode | : | Ex-style command prompt for :w, :q, :theme, :backend, and settings. |
| Terminal Mode | Ctrl+J | Direct focus on the embedded interactive terminal emulator. |
Comprehensive Keybinding Reference
Global & File Operations
| Shortcut | Action | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Ctrl+P | Command Palette | Open fuzzy command & action palette. |
| Ctrl+O | Open File | Open file prompt with fuzzy path autocomplete. |
| Ctrl+S | Save Buffer | Write current buffer to disk. |
| Ctrl+W | Close Buffer | Close active buffer tab (prompts if unsaved). |
| Ctrl+Q | Quit Editor | Exit editor safely. |
| Ctrl+Tab | Next Tab | Cycle to the next open buffer tab. |
| Alt+1..9 | Jump to Tab | Direct switch to buffer tab by number. |
| Ctrl+E | Toggle Explorer | Show/hide workspace file tree sidebar. |
Navigation & Search
| Shortcut | Action | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Ctrl+F | Find in File | Incremental search with live highlight. |
| Ctrl+H | Find & Replace | Search and replace single or all matches. |
| Ctrl+Shift+F | Workspace Grep | Global regex search across all project files. |
| Ctrl+G | Go to Line | Jump directly to line number or line:column. |
| n / N | Next / Prev Match | Jump between search occurrences in Normal mode. |
| gd / F12 | Go to Definition | Jump to symbol declaration via ALS language server. |
Editing & Formatting
| Shortcut | Action | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Ctrl+Z / u | Undo | Undo last edit action. |
| Ctrl+Y / Ctrl+R | Redo | Redo previously undone action. |
| Ctrl+/ | Toggle Comment | Toggle line or block comments (// or /* */). |
| Ctrl+D | Duplicate Line | Duplicate current line or selected block. |
| Ctrl+K, F | Format Code | Auto-format current buffer using AdeshLang formatter. |
| Tab / Shift+Tab | Indent / Outdent | Shift line or visual selection by tab width. |
Execution & Running
| Shortcut | Action | Description |
|---|---|---|
| F5 | Run Program | Execute active file with current backend. |
| Ctrl+F5 | Run with Backend | Choose execution backend (JIT, VM, Interpreter, AOT) and run. |
| F6 | Stop Execution | Terminate currently running process/runner. |
| Ctrl+` | Toggle Output Drawer | Open/collapse the bottom execution output log. |
| Ctrl+J | Toggle Interactive Terminal | Focus interactive terminal shell. |
Command-Line (:) Reference
Press : in Normal mode to open the command prompt:
| Command | Arguments | Description |
|---|---|---|
:w | [filename] | Save current file (optionally with new name). |
:q | Quit active buffer / exit if last buffer. | |
:wq, :x | Save and quit. | |
:q! | Force quit discarding unsaved modifications. | |
:e <path> | <filepath> | Open file at specified relative or absolute path. |
:theme <name> | emerald, dracula, monokai, nord, github-dark | Change color theme instantly. |
:backend <name> | interpreter, vm, jit, native, aot | Set default execution backend. |
:set <option> | wrap, nowrap, relativenumber, number, tabsize=4 | Toggle editor configuration options. |
:format | Format current document. | |
:goto <num> | <line_number> | Jump to specific line. |
:grep <query> | <pattern> | Search workspace files for string pattern. |
ALS (Language Server) Integration
The bundled editor connects seamlessly with the Adesh Language Server (ALS) to provide real-time IDE intelligence:
- Inline Diagnostics: Syntax errors and borrow-checker violations appear with underlined squigglies and status indicators in the gutter.
- Contextual Completion: Typing identifiers, object dots (
.), or import paths opens an autocomplete dropdown with docstrings and type signatures. - Type Hovers: Pressing K over any token in Normal mode displays its type signature and documentation.
- Auto-Format on Save: Automatically standardizes indentation, spacing, and bracket placement whenever a buffer is saved.
Configuration (editor.toml)
Customize your editor preferences by creating or editing ~/.adesh/editor.toml (Windows: %USERPROFILE%\.adesh\editor.toml):
# AdeshLang TUI Editor Configuration
# Location: ~/.adesh/editor.toml
[editor]
theme = "emerald-dark" # Options: "emerald-dark", "dracula", "monokai", "nord", "github-dark", "github-light"
tab_size = 4 # Number of spaces per tab
insert_spaces = true # Convert tabs to spaces
word_wrap = false # Enable word wrapping
line_numbers = "absolute" # Options: "absolute", "relative", "none"
highlight_current_line = true # Highlight active cursor line
auto_close_brackets = true # Auto-insert closing brackets and quotes
format_on_save = true # Format document on Ctrl+S
[runner]
default_backend = "jit-native"# Options: "interpreter", "bytecode-vm", "jit-native", "aot"
auto_open_output = true # Automatically open output drawer on execution
timeout_seconds = 15 # Watchdog execution timeout
[lsp]
enabled = true # Enable ALS language server integration
show_diagnostics = true # Show gutter error/warning markers
hover_tooltips = true # Enable hover inspection
[explorer]
show_hidden_files = false # Show dotfiles (.git, .env, etc.)
default_width = 28 # Explorer sidebar width in columns
Available Color Themes
| Theme Name | Style / Palette | Best For |
|---|---|---|
emerald-dark (default) | Deep obsidian background (#0B0F19) with vibrant emerald green (#10B981) and cyan accents. | Official AdeshLang brand experience. |
dracula | Classic dark purple/violet palette with pink and yellow highlights. | Low-light coding environments. |
monokai | High-contrast dark charcoal with green, yellow, and magenta tones. | Maximum token contrast. |
nord | Calming arctic blue and frosted slate palette. | Minimalist, soothing aesthetic. |
github-dark | Standard GitHub dark mode palette with crisp blue and orange tokens. | Consistency with web workflows. |
github-light | Clean light paper background with sharp syntax coloring. | Bright ambient environments. |
Troubleshooting & Tips
- Terminal Mouse Clicking: If your terminal supports mouse events (Windows Terminal, iTerm2, Alacritty, Kitty, WezTerm), you can click tabs, scroll, select text, and click top-bar menus directly with your mouse.
- Fast Exit: In any mode, pressing Ctrl+Q safely exits the editor.
- Diagnostics Inspection: Place the cursor over a marked line to read the exact compiler error and recommended fix in the status line.
- Backend Switching: Press Ctrl+F5 to benchmark and compare execution speeds across backends on the fly.