Tabby - multiplatform terminal emulator

Just started using this today…

It’s the Dog’s Bollocks! (That’s a good thing!)

Nearly IDENTICAL usage on MacOS, Windows and Linux…

Runs SWEET on my VirtualBox hosted Windows 10… 100% functional on my MacBook pro… 100% works on my Ubuntu 22.04…

The opacity settings work better on MacOS and Windows 10, than on Linux…

One, MAJOR, issue : it runs “SWEET AS” on my Windows 10 VM - but - it CRASHES on the shared Windows 10 VDI I use for work…

It even has some kinda “sync” feature, to sync your tabby settings - I’m going to give that a test drive and see how it works cross-platform… Has a feature to enable copy on select, and paste on middle click.

But - as of RIGHT NOW - I’m highly impressed - and - may end up sponsoring… This is a serious, potential, replacement for the feature limited “Windows Terminal” from Microsoft, and the flaky, overly epxpensive MobaXterm (it’s just a pre-packaged CygWin for lazy people [like me]).

Hmmm… The Linux version seems somewhat less featured, than on Windows 10 or MacOS… e.g. above “opacity”, and the Window control widgets on gnome default to MS Windows style (like a bunch of other web-apps for Linux from Microsoft)…

I may end up using this ONLY on MacOS and Windows (if I can make it more stable on the shared Windows 10 VDI’s I use for work) - perfectly happy to keep using Gnome Terminal or Gnome Console (kgx) on Ubuntu…


I managed to make it more stable by disabling GPU acceleration (Windows 10 VDI in Azure). I can use GPU acceleration on VirtualBox VM’s 'cause I enable GPU and VRAM on VM’s from VirtualBox…

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On Linux, Tabby would seem to be a better choice than a tiling window manager.
Might try it in my experimental VoidLinux/Lumina Desktop system I need a decent terminal emulator there… am using Xterm
Try how vi performs inside Tabby - it had better work or that rules it out.
It reminds me of when Emacs first appeared… people started using it because it was available for DOS and Linux.

Not in my Debian repo. Looks like one has to download a tar file. No 32 bit versions

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You can get the tar file from their website - or download the deb…

I’ve only tried installing the deb on Ubuntu 22…

The exe works most of the time on Windows as a portable app - actually ran it for a couple hours on the Windows 10 VDI (there’s up to 8 or so of them) I use for work - and it crashed on me (as did my sync agent - this is a piece of crap solution that might work acceptably for the Wintel guys, but is UNACCEPTABLE for UNIX) - installed fine on MacOS… So far, MacOS version seems the most stable… The transparency (opacity) in Windows and Linux seems a bit dodgy (doesn’t work in Linux until you select “Acrylic background” - I think this is 'cause it’s really a “Web App” (electron?).

It’s reasonably “solid” on my Windows 10 VM (21H1)…

I probably won’t be using it in Linux - for the time being - but I WANT TO USE IT IN Windows 10 VDI for work - but that PIECE OF SHIT (the VDI) system is so flaky… can’t be relied on…

I’ve seen that “acrylic background” thingie elsewhere… Oh yeah - that’s right in Microsoft’s ZERO bells and whistles “Windows Terminal”…

Seen a few posts recently where ppl have tried to get Windows Terminal to run CMD or PowerShell, and it can’t / won’t as the “default”… i.e. you can fire up a Windows Terminal and open a powershell in it - but you can’t make it the default for running PowerShell… And Microsoft say this is impossible, and can only be done in Windows 11, which is BULLSHIT, cause you did used to be able to do that (make the default “manager” for CMD, PowerShell and WSL The “Windows Terminal”)…

Tabby seems to indicate that it can do that too (become the default “window” to run CMD or PowerShell, or WSL but I can’t get that to work)…

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I did not notice that. Would not help with Void anyway.
It will be interesting to see how it goes in a qt dte.

Holy EXCREMENT BATMAN!

I don’t know if this is thanks to :

  1. tabby
  2. zsh
  3. MacOS

But :


i.e. I started typing - pressed tab for suggestions, pressed tab again (accidentally) and got a pick list - I’ve NEVER seen this behaviour before…

Just tested it out in Gnome Terminal (also ZSH) - it’s not Tabby (or MacOS)…


I should try this on bash… I’ve no idea how this feature escaped my notice for so long! It obviously must be using ncurses… when did they add this? Hmmm… Just tested it in bash - not a feature there… so it’s either out of the box with zsh, or some functionality that oh-my-zsh provides… I like it!

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It works in GNURootDebian on my tablet
Typed ‘l’, then one tab and got nothing, then another tab and got a list of commands starting with ‘l’

Is that what you mean?

No - more than that - you can then move the console cursor, and pick, or select the option you want…

I’m aware of the list feature - was even available in KSH if your config was setup (I think it was esc+esc, or something)… This is different…

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Discovered a tiny bug (with a fix) - with Tabby in Linux - e.g. in Gnome 3 or 4 - which already knows about the X select buffer, you don’t need to enable this feature in Tabby - if you do, every middle click double pastes the contents of the X select buffer (that’s less of a bug, than an undocumented feature :smiley: )

We only need this FUNDAMENTAL Tabby feature in Windows and MacOS (note : both the most common terminals for Mac users, the default that Cupertino ship with MacOS, and iTerm2 - have middle button paste the clipboard automatically, out of the box - and automatically copy text selection into the clipboard - because MacOS is still Unix, even if Quartz isn’t quite X).

Note also - I love this - I bought a little two button USB keyboard (bought 2), designed for some game where you constantly press two buttons - but I remapped (have to write into eeprom of the device) them to CMD+C and CMD+V - so I have single button copy, and single button paste, of the clipboard in MacOS (doesn’t work on Linux - as left CMD maps to Meta / Super [Win]) - finally got around to programming both of them - so now I keep one at work, one at home…

90% of all sysadmin these days is copy-pasta :smiley: from the likes of Stack Overflow

I finally got Monterey (MacOS 12) installed on the work MacBook (took some doing) so now I have universal access (it’s like Synergy, but for MacOS ONLY - but - better than Synergy! e.g. it has gesture support) - probably going to relegate my main Linux box to being a game source for Steam Link, and running VM’s (or maybe just a single monitor above my Apple workspace - and make one of my Macs the Synergy server)… Expecting a dual HDMI monitor dock (Apple sucks at multiple monitor support) on Tuesday, and a new touch-ID keyboard and magic trackpad (on Tuesday too) - I’ll still need a “real” PC style mouse with 3 buttons tho - so going to WFH till Wednesday (working on a single 24" FHD monitor sucks balls - compared to 32" QHD at home - with the dock I can use BOTH 24" FHD monitors at work). So - if I go that route - I can maybe try out the beta of Synergy client (or barrier) that supports WAYLAND finally!

Monterey kicks arse :

Just ask these f–kin’ hippies!

Tried it in Debian/Xfce/bash
Double tab gives the list, but I cant move the cursor to select one.
Must be a feature of Tabby only

No - I strongly suspect it’s ZSH… tried it in bash, in tabby, and it didn’t work… tried it in ZSH in gnome terminal, and gnome console, and iterm2 on MacOs - and confirmed - this behaviour (ncurses / curses pick list of type ahead suggestions on lines below)…

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