From aed9a5eec083230c5a84b5ef2c16260afea1445d Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Miguel Palhas <mpalhas@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, 2 Sep 2026 17:58:24 +0100
Subject: [PATCH] feat(maestro): AoE-style bare q/tab/esc keybinds in the TUI

Normal mode only exists while the sidebar is focused (Insert mode always
pairs with Focus::Pane), so bare `q` and `tab` there never reach a pty:
`q` quits, `tab` focuses the highlighted pane (same as Enter). `esc` is
added as a second, fixed way out of Insert alongside the leader.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Sonnet 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
---
 crates/maestro-tui/src/config.rs | 32 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++----
 1 file changed, 28 insertions(+), 4 deletions(-)

diff --git a/crates/maestro-tui/src/config.rs b/crates/maestro-tui/src/config.rs
index db75b8c..b031068 100644
--- a/crates/maestro-tui/src/config.rs
+++ b/crates/maestro-tui/src/config.rs
@@ -48,6 +48,10 @@ const DEFAULT_NORMAL: &[(&str, &str)] = &[
     ("c", "ToggleSidebarGroup"),
     // Catalog actions
     ("enter", "AttachHighlighted"),
+    // Tab focuses the highlighted pane, mirroring the web keybind — bare
+    // because Normal mode only exists while the sidebar is focused, so
+    // nothing forwards it to a pty.
+    ("tab", "AttachHighlighted"),
     ("s", "OpenSpawnModal"),
     // Fast-forward spawn (#67): the spawn key's neighbour does the same
     // thing with every default resolved and no form.
@@ -63,14 +67,17 @@ const DEFAULT_NORMAL: &[(&str, &str)] = &[
     ("ctrl-w b", "ToggleSidebar"),
     ("?", "ShowHelp"),
     ("ctrl-w q", "Quit"),
+    // Bare quit, AoE-style: only reachable from the sidebar (Normal mode
+    // never forwards keys to a pty), same reasoning as bare `tab` above.
+    ("q", "Quit"),
     // Mouse
     ("mouse:dblclick(sidebar-row)", "AttachHighlighted"),
 ];
 
-/// Default Insert-mode bindings. Empty by default — the only Insert binding
-/// is the leader, which is inserted dynamically by [`TuiConfig::load`] so
-/// rebinding the leader rebinds its Insert escape automatically.
-const DEFAULT_INSERT: &[(&str, &str)] = &[];
+/// Default Insert-mode bindings. The leader (`LeaveInsert`) is inserted
+/// dynamically by [`TuiConfig::load`] so rebinding it rebinds its Insert
+/// escape automatically; `esc` is a second, fixed way back to the sidebar.
+const DEFAULT_INSERT: &[(&str, &str)] = &[("esc", "LeaveInsert")];
 
 impl TuiConfig {
     /// Build a runtime config from a [`TuiSection`] (typically the `tui`
@@ -222,6 +229,23 @@ mod tests {
         );
     }
 
+    /// AoE-style defaults (#shortcuts): `q` and `tab` are bare because Normal
+    /// mode only exists while the sidebar is focused, so neither can leak
+    /// into a pty; `esc` is a second way out of Insert alongside the leader.
+    #[test]
+    fn aoe_style_defaults_are_bound() {
+        let cfg = TuiConfig::load(&TuiSection::default()).unwrap();
+        assert_eq!(cfg.keymap.resolve(Mode::Normal, "q"), Some(Action::Quit));
+        assert_eq!(
+            cfg.keymap.resolve(Mode::Normal, "tab"),
+            Some(Action::AttachHighlighted),
+        );
+        assert_eq!(
+            cfg.keymap.resolve(Mode::Insert, "esc"),
+            Some(Action::LeaveInsert),
+        );
+    }
+
     #[test]
     fn default_leader_is_ctrl_a_and_escapes_insert() {
         let cfg = TuiConfig::load(&TuiSection::default()).unwrap();