TUI Usage

Start the TUI

java --enable-native-access=ALL-UNNAMED -jar target/quarkus-forge.jar
--enable-native-access=ALL-UNNAMED suppresses Panama FFM warnings from the TamboUI terminal backend.

Core Workflow

  1. Choose platformStream, buildTool, and javaVersion.

  2. Fill project coordinates (groupId, artifactId, version, packageName, outputDir).

  3. Search and select extensions.

  4. Submit with Enter (or Alt+G).

UI Features

  • Extension descriptions: focus an extension to see its description below the list.

  • Fuzzy search highlighting: matching characters are highlighted in bold when searching.

  • Chip-style selected extensions: selected extensions render as styled badges.

  • Category item counts: section headers show item counts (e.g., ▼ Web (12)).

  • Search match count: active search shows 5/400 matches (Esc to clear).

  • Animated spinner: braille dot animation during generation.

  • Inline validation: fields show ⚠ error message inline.

  • Visible text caret: focused metadata/search inputs render a real caret at the active edit position.

  • Selector controls: focused selectors use Tamboui select controls with ◀ / ▶ indicators.

  • Overlay lists: command palette and post-generation menus render as navigable highlighted lists.

  • IDE auto-detection: post-generation menu shows detected IDEs (IntelliJ, VS Code, etc.).

Focus and Navigation

  • Tab / Shift+Tab: move focus through fields and actions.

  • / or Ctrl+F: focus extension search.

  • Ctrl+L: focus extension list.

  • Up / Down (or j / k): navigate extension list.

  • Space: toggle focused extension.

Productivity Shortcuts

  • Ctrl+R: reload extension catalog.

  • Ctrl+P: command palette.

  • ?: help overlay.

  • Ctrl+K: toggle favorites-only mode.

  • Ctrl+J: jump to next favorite.

Submit and Exit

  • Enter or Alt+G: generate project.

  • After success, use the post-generation menu to:

    • Export a Forgefile (with locked section) into the generated project directory.

    • Publish to GitHub (gh CLI required).

    • Open in your detected IDE (auto-detected from PATH, or configurable via QUARKUS_FORGE_IDE_COMMAND).

    • Open a terminal shell in the generated project.

  • Esc: clear active search/filter context first, then exit.

  • Ctrl+C: quit immediately.

Session Persistence

Your last selections (platform stream, build tool, java version, etc.) are saved in ~/.quarkus-forge/preferences.json and restored on next launch.

IDE Auto-Detection

After generating a project, the post-generation menu shows one entry per detected IDE. Quarkus Forge scans your system for installed editors:

IDE Detection Method

IntelliJ IDEA

macOS app bundle or idea on PATH

VS Code

macOS app bundle or code on PATH

Eclipse

macOS app bundle or eclipse on PATH

Cursor

cursor on PATH

Zed

zed on PATH

Neovim

nvim on PATH

To override auto-detection, set the QUARKUS_FORGE_IDE_COMMAND environment variable:

export QUARKUS_FORGE_IDE_COMMAND="code-insiders ."

The custom command appears first in the menu as "Custom (code-insiders .)".