pi-interactive-shell 0.4.0 → 0.4.1

package/CHANGELOG.md

@@ -2,6 +2,15 @@
 
 All notable changes to the `pi-interactive-shell` extension will be documented in this file.
 
+## [0.4.1] - 2026-01-17
+
+### Changed
+- **Rendered output for queries** - Status queries now return rendered terminal output (last 20 lines) instead of raw stream. This eliminates TUI animation noise (spinners, progress bars) and gives clean, readable content.
+- **Reduced output size** - Max 20 lines and 5KB per query (down from 100 lines and 10KB). Queries are for checking in, not dumping full output.
+
+### Fixed
+- **TUI noise in query output** - Raw stream captured all terminal animation (spinner text fragments like "Working", "orking", "rking"). Now uses xterm rendered buffer which shows clean final state.
+
 ## [0.4.0] - 2026-01-17
 
 ### Added

package/SKILL.md

@@ -110,9 +110,11 @@ interactive_shell({ sessionId: "calm-reef" })
 
 Returns:
 - `status`: "running" | "user-takeover" | "exited" | "killed" | "backgrounded"
-- `output`: New output since last check (incremental)
+- `output`: Last 20 lines of rendered terminal (clean, no TUI animation noise)
 - `runtime`: Time elapsed in ms
 
+**Don't query too frequently!** Wait 30-60 seconds between checks. The user is watching the overlay in real-time - you're just checking in periodically to see progress.
+
 ### Ending a Session
 ```typescript
 interactive_shell({ sessionId: "calm-reef", kill: true })
@@ -126,12 +128,12 @@ interactive_shell({ sessionId: "calm-reef", input: "/help\n" })
 interactive_shell({ sessionId: "calm-reef", input: { keys: ["ctrl+c"] } })
 ```
 
-### Context Budget
+### Query Output
 
-Updates have a **total character budget** (default: 100KB) to prevent overwhelming your context window:
-- Each update includes only NEW output since the last update (not full tail)
-- Default: 1500 chars max per update, 100KB total budget
-- When budget is exhausted, updates continue but without content (status-only)
+Status queries return **rendered terminal output** (what's actually on screen), not raw stream:
+- Last 20 lines of the terminal, clean and readable
+- No TUI animation noise (spinners, progress bars, etc.)
+- Max 5KB per query to keep context manageable
 - Configure via `handsFree.maxTotalChars`
 
 ```typescript

package/index.ts

@@ -312,10 +312,13 @@ The user sees the overlay and can:
 - Kill/background via double-Escape
 
 QUERYING SESSION STATUS:
-- interactive_shell({ sessionId: "calm-reef" }) - get status + new output
+- interactive_shell({ sessionId: "calm-reef" }) - get status + rendered terminal output (last 20 lines)
 - interactive_shell({ sessionId: "calm-reef", kill: true }) - end session
 - interactive_shell({ sessionId: "calm-reef", input: "..." }) - send input
 
+IMPORTANT: Don't query too frequently! Wait 30-60 seconds between status checks.
+The user is watching the overlay in real-time - you're just checking in periodically.
+
 SENDING INPUT:
 - interactive_shell({ sessionId: "calm-reef", input: "/help\\n" })
 - interactive_shell({ sessionId: "calm-reef", input: { keys: ["ctrl+c"] } })

package/overlay-component.ts

@@ -122,8 +122,7 @@ export class InteractiveShellOverlay implements Component, Focusable {
 	private lastDataTime = 0;
 	private quietTimer: ReturnType<typeof setTimeout> | null = null;
 	private hasUnsentData = false;
-	// Non-blocking mode: track status and output for agent queries
-	private agentOutputPosition = 0; // Track last read position for incremental output
+	// Non-blocking mode: track status for agent queries
 	private completionResult: InteractiveShellResult | undefined;
 
 	constructor(
@@ -242,33 +241,26 @@ export class InteractiveShellOverlay implements Component, Focusable {
 
 	// Public methods for non-blocking mode (agent queries)
 
-	// Max output per status query (10KB) - prevents overwhelming agent context
-	private static readonly MAX_STATUS_OUTPUT = 10 * 1024;
+	// Max output per status query (5KB) - prevents overwhelming agent context
+	private static readonly MAX_STATUS_OUTPUT = 5 * 1024;
+	// Max lines to return per query - keep small, we're just checking in
+	private static readonly MAX_STATUS_LINES = 20;
 
-	/** Get output since last check (incremental, truncated if too large) */
+	/** Get rendered terminal output (last N lines, truncated if too large) */
 	getOutputSinceLastCheck(): { output: string; truncated: boolean; totalBytes: number } {
-		const fullOutput = this.session.getRawStream({ stripAnsi: true });
-
-		// Handle case where buffer was trimmed and our position is now past the end
-		// This happens when rawOutput exceeds 1MB and older content is discarded
-		const clampedPosition = Math.min(this.agentOutputPosition, fullOutput.length);
-		const newOutput = fullOutput.substring(clampedPosition);
-		const totalBytes = newOutput.length;
-
-		// Always advance position (even if truncated, we don't want to re-send old data)
-		this.agentOutputPosition = fullOutput.length;
-
-		// Truncate if too large (keep the END, which is most recent/relevant)
-		if (newOutput.length > InteractiveShellOverlay.MAX_STATUS_OUTPUT) {
-			const truncated = newOutput.slice(-InteractiveShellOverlay.MAX_STATUS_OUTPUT);
-			return {
-				output: `[...${totalBytes - InteractiveShellOverlay.MAX_STATUS_OUTPUT} bytes truncated...]\n${truncated}`,
-				truncated: true,
-				totalBytes,
-			};
-		}
+		// Use rendered terminal output instead of raw stream
+		// This gives clean, readable content without TUI animation garbage
+		const lines = this.session.getTailLines({
+			lines: InteractiveShellOverlay.MAX_STATUS_LINES,
+			ansi: false,
+			maxChars: InteractiveShellOverlay.MAX_STATUS_OUTPUT,
+		});
+
+		const output = lines.join("\n");
+		const totalBytes = output.length;
+		const truncated = lines.length >= InteractiveShellOverlay.MAX_STATUS_LINES;
 
-		return { output: newOutput, truncated: false, totalBytes };
+		return { output, truncated, totalBytes };
 	}
 
 	/** Get current session status */

package/package.json

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
   "name": "pi-interactive-shell",
-  "version": "0.4.0",
+  "version": "0.4.1",
   "description": "Run AI coding agents as foreground subagents in pi TUI overlays with hands-free monitoring",
   "type": "module",
   "bin": {