A very ordinary problem
A server in one terminal, tests in another, logs in a third, and an AI agent thinking out loud in the fourth. Five minutes later, nobody remembered which window held the important process and which contained a fossilized `npm install`.
The first idea was a flexible grid: one workspace, several panes, and controls small enough to keep the terminal output in charge.
The first important decision
We did not want to invent a new terminal. We wanted to build a good host for the terminals people already use. Bash, PowerShell, WSL, Git Bash, and friends should feel at home, not as if they were on a guided tour.
That led to the first prototype with React, Electron, xterm.js, and node-pty. It worked. It also confirmed that “works on my machine” remains one of software development’s finest jokes.
What survived that first night
The grid, profiles, and obsession with reducing clicks are still at the heart of the project. The name changed, the visual system changed, and most of the architecture evolved. The need stayed exactly the same.