Release Digests

What each release changed, in the order you would meet it. Every feature below works with the default configuration unless the text says otherwise.

The release workflow defaults to a SemVer bump selected from Conventional Commits. It generates CHANGELOG.md and the GitHub release notes from commits since the preceding version tag. The curated digests on this page remain the human-readable feature tour for each release.

v0.21: menus, a clickable status bar, and tabs that scale

Released 11 September 2026.

Version 0.21 is about pointing at things. Everything mantis could already do from the keyboard became reachable by mouse, and the tab strip grew up.

Find any action without knowing its key

Press F10 for the action menu: every action grouped by what it does, each showing the key that runs it. Actions that cannot apply right now — a git command outside a repository, a fold command in a file with no fold regions — appear dimmed rather than missing, so the menu doubles as an explanation of why something is unavailable.

Set [ui] menu_bar = true in mantis.toml to keep the menu row permanently visible; hover a menu name to open it and click an action to run it. F10 works either way.

Click the status bar

The status bar became an instrument panel rather than a readout. Click the git, worktree, line, language, fold, error, update, or file-info segment to open its picker or run its action — the branch segment opens the revision picker, the worktree count opens the worktree switcher, the line number opens go-to-line. Segments hidden because the terminal is narrow are not clickable, since they are not there to click.

Tabs at any count

Tab handling now survives having a lot of them:

When tabs outgrow the strip, labels shrink toward a minimum and the strip scrolls to keep the active tab visible. Click the ‹/› edge affordances or use the mouse wheel over the strip to reach the rest.

Overlays that close when you expect

A batch of interaction fixes: the theme picker closes on a single Esc, compare mode exits reliably, and search navigation keys work again while a query is being typed. See Usage & Keybindings for the full map.

v0.20: one mantis, several projects

Released 8 September 2026.

Version 0.20 made mantis multi-project. Until now one process meant one repository; now it means as many as you want, each with its own tree, content pane, and remembered position.

Open more than one project

Pass several paths at once (mantis dir1 dir2), or press Ctrl+n and type a directory to open it as a new tab. A tab strip appears above the panes as soon as a second project is open — click a tab to switch, or its × to close.

Each tab is a full, independent mantis: its own expanded directories, open file, scroll position, and mantis.toml. The set of open projects is restored when you relaunch, so a morning’s layout survives a reboot.

Folding for six more formats

Bundled language providers now fold TypeScript and TSX, Go templates, CSS, TOML, INI, and SQL. Open a file, put the cursor on a foldable construct, and press Space. Every provider can be disabled individually under [plugins] in mantis.toml; Plugins lists them.

A worktree switcher that opens instantly

The worktree picker no longer waits for git before drawing. It appears immediately with every worktree listed, and changed-file counts fill in as the background scan finishes.

v0.19: structured data, inline images, and a safer plugin registry

Released 6 September 2026.

Version 0.19 went after the files that are technically text but miserable to read as text — big JSON documents, Kubernetes manifests — and taught mantis to show pictures.

Navigate JSON by path

Open a JSON file and the status bar shows the path to the value under the cursor, so you always know where you are inside a deep document. To narrow the view, run Open JSON query bar from Ctrl+P and filter or project with a jq-flavoured subset: .a.b[0], .items[], {name, image}. It works on JSONL as well.

Know what a manifest is before you read it

A bundled k8s plugin recognises Kubernetes manifests and summarises them in the status bar: the first resource’s identity and per-kind counts across ----separated documents, for example Deployment/nginx (default) · 3 Deployments · 2 Services · 1 ConfigMap. Files without both apiVersion and kind are left alone.

It rides on a new plugin capability, status_facts, which any language provider can use to contribute a short status-bar summary — see Plugin Development.

See images without leaving the terminal

On terminals that speak the Kitty graphics protocol — Ghostty, Kitty, WezTerm — images render inline in the content pane. Set content.image_preview = false to turn it off. Everywhere else, the binary-file placeholder now reports the image’s real dimensions instead of only its size.

Pin the files you keep coming back to

Press B to bookmark the open file and b to open the bookmarks picker. Bookmarks are per workspace and restored across sessions, so each project keeps its own shortlist.

Terraform folding and a stricter registry

HCL joins the folding set: .tf, .tfvars, and .hcl files fold blocks correctly through comments, quoted strings, and heredocs.

The plugin registry gained a trust model. Installing a plugin now requires a sha256 digest in the registry index, and mantis refuses an artifact whose digest is missing or does not match. Plugin Registry documents the format.

v0.18: logs, tables, worktrees, and a right mouse button

Released 28 August 2026.

Version 0.18 pushed mantis past source code into the other files a working day is made of — logs, exports, credentials, manifests — and made the mouse a first-class way to drive it.

Follow a log while it is being written

Press F to follow a file: mantis stays pinned to the tail as new lines arrive. Scroll up to read back and follow quietly unpins; return to the bottom with G or End and it re-pins. Press & to open the filter bar and reduce the view to lines containing a query.

Read CSV and TSV as tables

.csv and .tsv files render as aligned tables with headers and box-drawing borders, quotes and escapes handled per RFC 4180. Wide tables scroll sideways with Left/Right; Toggle CSV/TSV table view in the palette returns to raw text. Files past prettify_size_limit stay raw, as with JSON.

JSONL files render one row per record, each expandable in place, so a structured log reads as a list instead of a wall.

Credentials stay masked unless you ask

Credential-shaped values in .env and similar files are masked by default, with a fixed-width placeholder so the length of a secret is not exposed either. Toggle secret reveal in the palette unmasks the current file for the session only — nothing is persisted. Set content.mask_secrets = false to disable the behaviour entirely.

Move between worktrees

Open worktree switcher lists every linked worktree of the current repository with its branch and changed-file count, and Enter re-roots mantis there. Each worktree keeps its own session state, so switching back returns you to where you were. When a repository has more than one worktree, the status bar says so.

Right-click anywhere useful

Right-click a tree row or the content pane for a context menu at the cursor: open, open in editor or the default application, reveal in the file manager, copy absolute or relative path, expand or collapse, and the word-wrap and raw-markdown toggles. Navigate with the mouse or j/k, activate with Enter or a click, dismiss with Esc.

Smaller things that add up

nginx.conf and Justfile get syntax highlighting. Narrow terminals explain themselves instead of rendering a broken frame. Blame mode and git mode stay visible in the status bar when the content pane has focus. Piped input (git diff | mantis) is fully interactive.

v0.17: faster navigation, richer review, and broader language support

Version 0.17 makes the command palette the quickest route into a repository, adds a commit-oriented review flow, and expands the file types that mantis can read well out of the box. Everything below is available with the default configuration.

One palette for commands, files, content, and lines

Press Ctrl+P to open the command palette. Its first character chooses what you are looking for:

The palette remembers which commands you use. With an empty query, your most recent command and the most useful recent commands appear first; that ranking gradually gives more weight to what you use now. Set palette_pin_recent = false or palette_frequent_count = 0 in mantis.toml if you prefer an unpinned palette.

Plugins can also add actions to this same palette. Plugin authors can use the register_commands protocol action; see Plugin Development for the message format and lifecycle rules.

Review a change since any revision

Use Compare against a revision from Ctrl+P to review the current working tree against a branch, tag, commit hash, or revspec such as HEAD~3. Select a suggestion or type the revision and press Enter. The tree then contains only files changed since that revision, and selecting a file opens its diff. The status bar displays the selected comparison base.

There is also a repository-wide commit browser. Press L while the tree has focus, or run Browse repository commits from the palette. Type to filter by hash, author, or subject, select a commit, and press Enter to begin a compare review from that commit. Press Esc or Ctrl+D to leave compare mode.

See Git Features for the full git workflow.

Fold structured data and shell scripts

The bundled JSON, YAML, and shell language providers are enabled by default. Open a .json, .yaml/.yml, .sh, .bash, or .zsh file, focus the content pane, place the active line on a foldable section, and press Space to collapse or expand it.

• JSON folds multi-line objects and arrays. Use the existing JSON pretty-print command first when viewing minified JSON.
• YAML folds indentation-based sections.
• Shell folding recognizes function and compound blocks while ignoring braces in comments, quoted strings, and heredocs.

The providers can be disabled individually under [plugins] in mantis.toml; Plugins lists their names.

More files highlighted without setup

TOML, TypeScript/TSX, and Dockerfile syntax packs now ship enabled. Open a .toml, .ts, .tsx, .mts, .cts, or .jsx file, or a Dockerfile or Containerfile, and mantis selects the matching highlighting automatically. This includes common configuration files such as Cargo.toml, pyproject.toml, and mantis.toml.

For every bundled provider and syntax pack, including how to opt out, see Plugins.

v0.16: review tools and language-aware reading

Version 0.16 focused on making code review more legible while adding folding for the languages most commonly encountered in a repository.

Compare a revision and inspect blame in context

To review all changes since a branch, tag, hash, or revspec, run Compare against a revision from Ctrl+P, choose or type the revision, and press Enter. The changed-file tree and each file’s diff stay scoped to that base; press Ctrl+D to return to normal browsing.

With a tracked file open, press Ctrl+b to open the full-file blame pane. It follows the content cursor and shows the hash, author, date, and subject for each line. Press B in the content pane when you only need the active line’s blame summary. The Git Features guide covers both workflows.

Fold Rust, Python, and Go

The bundled Rust, Python, and Go providers add fold regions for .rs, .py, and .go files. Focus the content pane, move to a foldable declaration or block, and press Space to collapse or reopen it. Folding stays available alongside the ordinary syntax highlighting and can be disabled per provider in mantis.toml if needed.

Faster discovery and safer diagnostics

The command palette now presents categories, descriptions, match highlights, and context when an action cannot apply. Press Ctrl+P, type an action name, and use the displayed shortcut or Enter to run it.

Use Report a bug (save diagnostics locally) from the palette to create a local, reviewable report, or Toggle telemetry to opt into the local-only usage log. Neither feature uploads data. See Telemetry & Bug Reports for the saved locations and contents.

v0.15: navigation and compatibility polish

Version 0.15 was a focused stability release rather than a new interaction mode. Large trees avoid an unnecessary deep scan when nothing is expanded, so starting a repository and moving through its top level is more responsive.

Visual selection now remains visible on the active line, making it easier to keep your place while copying or inspecting a range. Existing configuration files using older git_mode and renamed keymap fields continue to load without spurious warnings; consult Configuration when you are ready to migrate to the current names.

v0.14: pager mode, powerful search, and familiar keys

Version 0.14 made mantis more useful in command pipelines and easier to learn for users coming from common editors.

Use mantis as a terminal pager

Pipe a diff, log, or any text into mantis to browse it interactively:

git diff | mantis
git log -p | mantis
kubectl logs pod | mantis

Diff-shaped input opens in a navigable side-by-side view. For other input, use --language when you want to force syntax highlighting. See Pager mode for behavior and platform details.

Tune a search without changing its query

In content search or the in-file search bar, press Ctrl+A for case-sensitive matching, Ctrl+W for whole-word matching, and Ctrl+R for a regular expression. The active [Aa], [\b], and [.*] indicators show which constraints are in effect. Press the same shortcut again to turn it off.

Learn the editor-style defaults

The shipped keymap uses familiar editor-style bindings: Ctrl+P opens the palette, Ctrl+T finds files, Ctrl+F searches contents, Ctrl+G goes to a line, and Ctrl+D opens the changed-file review view. Press ? or F1 for the structured help overlay, then use its tabs to browse key groups. All of these bindings remain remappable in mantis.toml.

Plugin authors should update manifests to mantis_protocol = "3" when using the protocol-3 request/response, key-consumption, or provider-priority features; Plugin Development has the compatibility details.

v0.13: a more dependable everyday viewer

Version 0.13 improved the tools used to orient yourself in a repository and made plugin failures easier to diagnose.

Preview themes and use a scrollable help overlay

Press t in the tree to open the theme picker. Moving through its entries previews each theme immediately; press Enter to keep it or Esc to return to the original theme. The Themes page explains persistent theme configuration.

Press ? or F1 whenever you need a reminder. Help is scrollable, and its Git section collects the status, diff, blame, and history shortcuts in one place.

Rely on safer sessions and clearer plugin failures

Each workspace keeps independent session state, so multiple mantis instances no longer overwrite one another’s restored view. Bundled plugins are embedded with the application rather than relying on a local build at startup, and old retired shell plugins are removed during upgrade.

If a process plugin exits unexpectedly, mantis keeps its recent stderr and points to a local plugin log. Open the plugin picker with p in the tree to check its status; Plugins explains how to enable, disable, and configure plugins.