rc3-tui 0.4.6

RC3 Command Center - Modular CLI Dashboard with Keyboard-Driven Command Execution

RC3 Command Center v0.4.4

A professional CLI dashboard for developers - keyboard-driven command execution with optimized performance and lazy loading.

Features

• Navigator Tab: Unified split-screen interface combining directory browsing and instant command execution - browse with hjkl, execute with any letter key
• Command Reference Tab: Never forget your shortcuts - comprehensive list of all available commands with descriptions
• Quick Commands: Execute predefined commands from YAML configuration
• System Monitoring: Real-time CPU, memory, disk, and process monitoring (on-demand only)
• Developer Tools: Git operations and system utilities
• File Browser: Interactive file explorer with create, rename, delete, and open operations
• Plugin System: Auto-discovery of modular plugins with lazy loading
• Professional UI: Clean, minimal interface with instant tab navigation
• Global Access: Install once, use anywhere with rc3 command
• Performance Optimized: Instant tab switching, minimal CPU usage, lazy plugin loading

Performance

v0.3.8 Optimization Highlights:

• ⚡ Instant Tab Switching: <50ms tab switches (was 200-500ms)
• 🔋 70% CPU Reduction: System monitoring only runs when visible
• 🚀 60% Faster Startup: Lazy loading reduces startup time from ~2s to ~0.8s
• 💾 Smart Resource Usage: Only active tabs consume resources
• 🎯 Optimized Focus: Direct widget references eliminate DOM queries

The TUI now delivers desktop-app-level responsiveness with minimal system overhead.

Installation

cd rc3_tui
pip install -e .

Usage

Simply run:

rc3

Navigation

• Tab Navigation: Use arrow keys (← →) or number keys (1-5)

  • 1 - Navigator (Primary Interface)
  • 2 - Commands (Quick Reference)
  • 3 - System Monitor
  • 4 - Developer Tools
  • 5 - File Browser

• Navigator Tab (Tab 1 - Primary Interface):

  • Left Panel - Directory browser (always visible)
    • hjkl or ↑↓←→ - Navigate files/folders (Vim-style)
    • Enter or l/→ - Enter directory or open file
    • h/← or Backspace - Go to parent directory
    • n - Create new folder
    • r - Rename selected item
    • d - Delete selected item (y to confirm)
    • o - Open in system default application
    • e - Open current directory in Explorer
  • Right Panel - Command output display
  • Letter Keys - Execute commands instantly (e.g., press g for git status)
    • Commands auto-execute in currently browsed directory
    • Output appears in right panel
    • Note: h, j, k, l are reserved for navigation

• Commands Tab (Tab 2): Reference list of all available shortcuts - never forget your commands!

• System Tab (Tab 3): Press c (CPU), m (Memory), d (Disk), n (Network), a (All) for detailed views

• Tools Tab (Tab 4): Developer tools and utilities

• Files Tab (Tab 5): Alternative file browser

• Global Controls:

  • Quit: q or Ctrl+C
  • Dark Mode: Ctrl+D to toggle
  • Reload: Ctrl+R to reload plugins

• Navigator Tab Shortcuts:

  • Smart Git Commit: g - AI-powered commit & push from current directory (see below)

Smart Git Commit (Hotkey: g in Navigator Tab)

The g hotkey in the Navigator tab (Tab 1) provides AI-powered git automation using OpenAI's Codex CLI:

What it does:

1. 🔍 Finds the git root directory from your current location
2. 📊 Analyzes all modified, staged, and untracked files
3. 📝 Generates a conventional commit message using Codex CLI
4. 📦 Stages all changes (git add .)
5. 💾 Commits with the AI-generated message
6. 🚀 Pushes to the remote repository

Requirements:

• OpenAI Codex CLI installed and authenticated

  npm install -g @openai/codex
  # or
  brew install codex
  

• Sign in with your ChatGPT account:

  codex
  # Then select "Sign in with ChatGPT"
  

Usage:

1. Switch to Navigator tab (press 1 or click Navigator)
2. Navigate to your project directory
3. Press g to run the automation

The automation will:

• Find the git root starting from the current Navigator directory
• Analyze all your changes in the repository
• Generate a smart commit message in conventional format (feat:, fix:, refactor:, etc.)
• Stage, commit, and push automatically

Conventional Commit Format: Generated messages follow best practices:

• feat: add new feature
• fix: resolve bug in parser
• refactor: optimize performance
• docs: update README
• chore: update dependencies

Error Handling:

• Falls back to "chore: automated commit" if Codex fails
• Validates git repository before proceeding
• Provides step-by-step notifications in the TUI
• Handles edge cases (untracked files, no changes, etc.)

Example Workflow:

1. Make code changes in your project
2. Open RC3 TUI: rc3
3. Press 1 to switch to Navigator tab
4. Navigate to your project directory (or any subdirectory)
5. Press g
6. Watch as changes are analyzed, committed, and pushed automatically

Configuration

Configuration files are stored in ~/.rc3/:

commands.yaml

Define your custom commands:

quick_commands:
  - name: "Edit in Vim"
    shortcut: "v"
    command: "Start-Process powershell -ArgumentList '-NoExit', '-Command', 'vim {file}'"
    shell: "powershell"
    description: "Open selected file in vim (new terminal)"
  
  - name: "Open in VSCode"
    shortcut: "c"
    command: "code {path}"
    shell: "powershell"
    description: "Open selected file in VS Code"
  
  - name: "Git Log"
    shortcut: "l"
    command: "git log --oneline -10"
    shell: "powershell"
    description: "Show recent git commits"
  
  - name: "Git Diff File"
    shortcut: "f"
    command: "git diff {file}"
    shell: "powershell"
    description: "Show git diff for selected file"

Important - Reserved Keys in Navigator Tab:

• Navigation keys: h, j, k, l - Vim-style navigation
• File operations: n, r, d, o, e, t - Create, rename, delete, open, explorer, terminal
• Git automation: g - Smart Git Commit (AI-powered)
• Available for custom commands: b, c, f, m, p, s, u, v, w, x, y, z

Example shortcuts in use:

• v - Edit in Vim
• s - Git Status
• f - Git Diff File

Dynamic File Placeholders:

• Use {file} in your commands to reference the selected filename (e.g., README.md)
• Use {path} in your commands to reference the full path (e.g., C:\Users\rc3\README.md)
• Examples:
  • vim {file} - Edit the selected file
  • code {path} - Open in VS Code
  • git diff {file} - Show git changes
  • Start-Process powershell -ArgumentList '-Command', 'vim {file}' - Open in new terminal

config.yaml

Application settings:

theme: "dark"
plugins:
  enabled:
    - quick_commands
    - system_info
    - dev_tools
    - working_directory

Creating Plugins

Create a new file in rc3/plugins/:

# rc3/plugins/my_plugin.py
from textual.widgets import Static
from rc3.plugins.base import BasePlugin

class Plugin(BasePlugin):
    name = "My Plugin"
    description = "My custom plugin"
    
    def render(self):
        return Static("Hello from my plugin!")

That's it! The plugin will be auto-discovered on next launch.

Project Structure

rc3_tui/
├── rc3/
│   ├── core/              # Core engine
│   │   ├── app.py         # Main TUI app
│   │   ├── plugin_manager.py
│   │   ├── config_manager.py
│   │   └── command_runner.py
│   ├── plugins/           # Extensible plugins
│   │   ├── base.py        # Plugin base class
│   │   ├── quick_commands.py
│   │   ├── system_info.py
│   │   ├── dev_tools.py
│   │   ├── working_directory.py
│   │   └── file_browser.py
│   └── assets/
│       └── theme.tcss     # Styling
├── pyproject.toml
├── README.md
└── agent.md              # Agent integration guide

Development

Install with dev dependencies:

pip install -e ".[dev]"

Run with hot reload:

textual run --dev rc3

Current Status

Completed Features ✅

• Quick Commands - Interactive keyboard-driven command execution
  • Keyboard-first design: Single-letter shortcuts from YAML config
  • Slash command search: Type /git then Enter to execute
  • Vim-style navigation (j/k) and arrow keys
  • Async command execution (non-blocking UI)
  • Live output display with scrollable, color-coded status
  • Command timing and duration tracking
  • Tab-scoped shortcuts (no conflicts with global navigation)
• Real-time System Monitoring - Live updates every 2s with color-coded progress bars
  • Conditional monitoring - Only runs when System tab is visible (70% CPU savings)
  • Async/non-blocking - Background threads eliminate UI lag (asyncio.to_thread())
  • Lazy loading - Initializes on first tab access, not at startup
  • Two-column layout: metrics (left) and processes (right)
  • CPU usage (per-core and aggregate)
  • Memory usage with GB details
  • Disk usage with GB details
  • Top 20 processes by CPU usage (auto-refreshing, scrollable)
  • Expandable details with keyboard toggles (c, m, d, n, a)
  • CPU details: Frequency, per-core usage
  • Memory details: Swap memory, breakdown
  • Disk details: I/O stats, partitions
  • Network details: Connections, I/O (optimized for Windows)
  • Cross-platform compatibility (works with any Textual version)
• Working Directory Navigator - Interactive file explorer
  • Keyboard-driven navigation (vim + arrow keys)
  • Create folders with inline input prompts
  • Rename files/folders with validation
  • Delete with confirmation (y/N)
  • Open files/folders in system default applications
  • Set working directory for command execution
  • Cross-platform support (Windows, Linux, macOS)
  • Sorted display: directories first, then files
• Developer Tools plugin (Git operations, system utilities)
• Professional tab-based navigation
• Global command installation (rc3)
• Plugin auto-discovery system
• Dark/light mode toggle

Recent Updates ✅

• v0.3.9 Smart Git Automation (Oct 2025)
  • AI-powered git commit message generation using Codex CLI
  • Global hotkey g for instant commit & push workflow
  • Automatic git root detection
  • Conventional commit format (feat:, fix:, refactor:, etc.)
  • Full error handling with fallback messages
• v0.3.8 Performance Optimization (Oct 2025)
  • Instant tab switching with lazy plugin loading
  • Conditional system monitoring (only runs when tab is visible)
  • 70% CPU reduction when not viewing System tab
  • Optimized focus logic with cached widget references
  • Removed expensive Windows operations (net_connections)
• Tab-Scoped Hotkeys - Press number keys (1-5) to switch tabs, then immediately use tab-specific shortcuts
• Auto-Focus System - No manual tabbing required, widgets auto-focus when switching tabs
• Conflict Resolution - Dark mode moved to Ctrl+D, tab-specific keys work without conflicts

Future Enhancements 🚀

• Command history and favorites
• Search/filter commands with fuzzy matching
• Live output streaming (real-time command output)
• Historical charts for system metrics
• Alert thresholds for resource usage
• Advanced file operations (copy, paste, multi-select)
• File preview panel in Working Directory Navigator
• Docker container management
• Network monitoring tools
• Custom theme support
• Plugin marketplace

License

MIT