Hi friends,

Tmux is a fantastic tool for managing terminal sessions, but it has its limitations. One major drawback is the lack of a floating pane feature, which can make navigating between different panes cumbersome and inefficient.

Most users workaround this by creating new Tmux windows or panes, or by using hidden splits to zoom in and out. These methods work but can be inefficient and require many keystrokes, disrupting workflow and focus.

Conventional options often feel clunky and time-consuming. Switching between multiple panes or windows, and constantly zooming in and out, can break concentration and slow down productivity. It makes the user feel like they are constantly leaving their context to check logs or run additional processes.

I built a new plugin called tmux-floax to address this issue specifically!

This plugin introduces a floating pane over Tmux, providing a seamless way to manage additional tasks without leaving the current context.

Key Features of floax:

• Distinct Style and Customization: The floating pane has a unique style and colors that are fully configurable, making it easy to differentiate from the main working environment.
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• Persistent Shell: Unlike standard Tmux popups, Floax maintains a persistent shell using its own Tmux session, allowing you to hide and bring back the pane as needed without losing your history (unlike a standard tmux-popup).
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• Ease of Use: The plugin minimizes keystrokes. For example, to switch between code and logs, you simply pop the pane, no need to zoom in and out multiple times.
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• Full Integration with any workflow: Being Tmux session on its own, you can split the floating pane vertically or horizontally, resize panes within it, and even go full screen with simple key bindings.
• Customizable Layout Options: Quickly adjust the size and layout of the floating pane with convenient keyboard shortcuts.

Getting the plugin:

1. Add omerxx/tmux-floax to your Tmux config using TPM (Tmux Plugin Manager).
2. Source the configuration file and Run Ctrl-I for TPM to install new plugins

Check out tmux-floax on GitHub, give it a star if you like it, and feel free to open issues for any improvements or bugs you find.

I’d be thrilled to hear feeback of any kind!

Happy Tmuxing!