Fix the composer scroller flash, edit focus, and Shift+Return

- The composer only enables its scroller once the text is taller than the
  seven-line max, so it no longer flashes on every growth step.
- The composer re-asserts first responder only when canStealFocus is true;
  it is off while a modal field or the sync overlay has the keyboard, so
  typing in the edit dialog, search and sync fields no longer bounces back.
- The edit dialog is a ComposerView now: Return saves, Shift+Return inserts
  a newline, Esc cancels, and paste uses the same path as the composer.
- Shift+Return never actually worked: returning false from doCommandBy does
  not fall through to the default newline insertion, so the event died. The
  newline is inserted explicitly and the Shift state comes from the keyDown.

AGENTS.md

@@ -44,7 +44,12 @@ clicking an item copies it back to the clipboard.
   newline, Esc forwards to the panel (clear selection, else hide). Height is
   measured from the text and pushed into a `height` binding the panel applies
   as a frame — a representable cannot resize itself through
-  `intrinsicContentSize` once SwiftUI offers a larger size.
+  `intrinsicContentSize` once SwiftUI offers a larger size. The vertical
+  scroller is disabled until the text is taller than the max height, so it
+  never flashes during growth. The composer re-asserts first responder on
+  updates only while `canStealFocus` is true; the panel turns it off whenever
+  a modal field (search, edit, new workspace) or the sync overlay owns the
+  keyboard — otherwise every render stole focus back mid-edit.
 - `Sources/Prompt/PanelView.swift` — the panel UI. Header (workspace switcher,
   search, add photos), a segmented Workspace/All tab (All lists every prompt
   labeled with its workspace), item list, in-panel edit modal, composer.
@@ -177,6 +182,14 @@ brew upgrade --cask prompt
 
 ## Gotchas
 
+- **`@Published` publishes on every assignment, even when the value is
+  unchanged.** The 5-second sync poll used to assign `lastError = nil`
+  unconditionally; `PanelView` observes `SyncService`, so the entire panel
+  (rows, overlays, composer) rebuilt every 5 seconds, forever. Over five days
+  of uptime that was ~185 CPU-minutes and ~190 MB of footprint, and every
+  click started to lag. Poll state now goes through `setError`, which no-ops
+  when equal, and the header's sync dot is its own view so sync publishes
+  cannot invalidate the list.
 - **Never assign `NSApp.mainMenu`.** SwiftUI installs a menu whose Edit items
   are how AppKit routes Cmd+C/V/X/A/Z; replacing it with a hand-built menu
   silently breaks pasting, copying and select-all in the composer (this shipped
@@ -213,6 +226,16 @@ brew upgrade --cask prompt
   firing. The tap is re-enabled on `tapDisabledByTimeout`.
 - `Store` is `@MainActor`; anything reaching it from monitors/callbacks must
   go through `Task { @MainActor in }`.
+- **The composer steals focus via `updateNSView`, so gate it.** It used to
+  re-assert first responder on every render, which yanked focus out of the
+  edit dialog (and search/sync fields) on every keystroke. The gate is
+  `canStealFocus`; any new modal text field must be included in it.
+- **`doCommandBy` has no fall-through once the delegate implements it.**
+  Returning false for `insertNewline` on Shift+Return killed the event instead
+  of inserting a newline, so Shift+Return never actually worked. The composer
+  now inserts it explicitly, and reads the Shift state from the `keyDown`
+  currently being handled because `NSApp.currentEvent` is not reliably
+  populated when the command fires.
 - `captureSelection()` blocks up to 0.5s polling the pasteboard — keep it off
   the main thread (the hotkey handler already dispatches to a global queue).
 - The double-Shift tap needs Accessibility; without it the event tap silently

Sources/Prompt/ComposerView.swift

@@ -16,6 +16,10 @@ struct ComposerView: NSViewRepresentable {
     @Binding var isFocused: Bool
     @Binding var height: CGFloat
     var placeholder: String
+    /// When false, the composer never makes itself first responder. The panel
+    /// turns this off while a modal field (search, edit, new workspace) or the
+    /// sync overlay is up — otherwise every render stole focus back here.
+    var canStealFocus: Bool = true
     var onSubmit: () -> Void
     var onEscape: (() -> Void)? = nil
 
@@ -34,7 +38,10 @@ struct ComposerView: NSViewRepresentable {
         let scrollView = NSScrollView()
         scrollView.drawsBackground = false
         scrollView.borderType = .noBorder
-        scrollView.hasVerticalScroller = true
+        // The scroller starts disabled and is only switched on once the text
+        // is taller than the max height. With it always on, every growth step
+        // briefly overflows and the scroller flashes for one frame.
+        scrollView.hasVerticalScroller = false
         scrollView.autohidesScrollers = true
         scrollView.horizontalScrollElasticity = .none
 
@@ -67,8 +74,10 @@ struct ComposerView: NSViewRepresentable {
             textView.string = text
             updateHeight(textView)
         }
-        textView.placeholderText = placeholder
+        if textView.placeholderText != placeholder {
-        if isFocused, scrollView.window?.firstResponder != textView {
+            textView.placeholderText = placeholder
+        }
+        if isFocused, canStealFocus, scrollView.window?.firstResponder != textView {
             scrollView.window?.makeFirstResponder(textView)
         }
     }
@@ -79,7 +88,9 @@ struct ComposerView: NSViewRepresentable {
         layoutManager.ensureLayout(for: textContainer)
         let content = layoutManager.usedRect(for: textContainer).height + 2 * textView.textContainerInset.height
         let line = Self.oneLineHeight
-        let clamped = max(line, min(content, line * maxLines + 1))
+        let maxHeight = line * maxLines + 1
+        textView.enclosingScrollView?.hasVerticalScroller = content > maxHeight
+        let clamped = max(line, min(content, maxHeight))
         if abs(height - clamped) > 0.5 {
             // Defer so the binding is not written from inside a layout pass.
             DispatchQueue.main.async { self.height = clamped }
@@ -101,7 +112,7 @@ struct ComposerView: NSViewRepresentable {
             ) { [weak self, weak textView] note in
                 guard let self, let textView,
                       (note.object as? NSWindow) === textView.window,
-                      self.parent.isFocused else { return }
+                      self.parent.isFocused, self.parent.canStealFocus else { return }
                 textView.window?.makeFirstResponder(textView)
             }
         }
@@ -129,8 +140,14 @@ struct ComposerView: NSViewRepresentable {
                 return true
             }
             guard commandSelector == #selector(NSResponder.insertNewline(_:)) else { return false }
-            if NSApp.currentEvent?.modifierFlags.contains(.shift) == true {
+            // NSApp.currentEvent is not reliably set when the command fires,
-                return false
+            // so the Shift state comes from the keyDown currently being handled.
+            // And returning false here does NOT fall through to the default
+            // newline insertion once a delegate implements doCommandBy — the
+            // event just dies — so insert the newline explicitly.
+            if (textView as? ComposerTextView)?.keyDownModifiers.contains(.shift) == true {
+                textView.insertNewline(nil)
+                return true
             }
             parent.onSubmit()
             return true
@@ -143,6 +160,16 @@ private final class ComposerTextView: NSTextView {
         didSet { needsDisplay = true }
     }
 
+    /// Modifier flags of the keyDown currently being handled. `doCommandBy`
+    /// runs inside that call tree and cannot rely on `NSApp.currentEvent`.
+    var keyDownModifiers: NSEvent.ModifierFlags = []
+
+    override func keyDown(with event: NSEvent) {
+        keyDownModifiers = event.modifierFlags
+        super.keyDown(with: event)
+        keyDownModifiers = []
+    }
+
     override func draw(_ dirtyRect: NSRect) {
         super.draw(dirtyRect)
         guard string.isEmpty, !placeholderText.isEmpty else { return }

Sources/Prompt/PanelView.swift

@@ -5,7 +5,6 @@ import UniformTypeIdentifiers
 struct PanelView: View {
     @ObservedObject var store: Store
     @ObservedObject private var sync = SyncService.shared
-
     @State private var composer = ""
     @State private var composerFocused = false
     @State private var composerHeight: CGFloat = ComposerView.oneLineHeight
@@ -20,13 +19,15 @@ struct PanelView: View {
     @State private var lastSelectedID: UUID?
     @State private var editingItem: PromptItem?
     @State private var editText = ""
+    @State private var editFocused = false
+    @State private var editHeight: CGFloat = ComposerView.oneLineHeight
     @State private var copiedID: UUID?
     @State private var accessibilityGranted = AXIsProcessTrusted()
 
     private enum Tab { case workspace, all }
     @State private var tab: Tab = .workspace
 
-    private enum Field: Hashable { case search, newWorkspace, editor }
+    private enum Field: Hashable { case search, newWorkspace }
     @FocusState private var focusedField: Field?
 
     var body: some View {
@@ -84,8 +85,7 @@ struct PanelView: View {
             Spacer()
 
             Button { withAnimation(.easeInOut(duration: 0.15)) { showSync.toggle() } } label: {
-                Image(systemName: "arrow.triangle.2.circlepath")
+                SyncDot()
-                    .foregroundStyle(sync.code == nil ? Color.secondary : Color.accentColor)
             }
             .buttonStyle(.plain).help("Sync")
             Button { toggleSearch() } label: { Image(systemName: "magnifyingglass") }
@@ -143,6 +143,7 @@ struct PanelView: View {
                 .onExitCommand {
                     search = ""
                     showSearch = false
+                    focusedField = nil
                     composerFocused = true
                 }
             if !search.isEmpty {
@@ -324,8 +325,9 @@ struct PanelView: View {
             if case .text(let text) = item.content, !multiple {
                 Button("Edit…") {
                     editText = text
+                    editHeight = ComposerView.oneLineHeight
                     editingItem = item
-                    focusedField = .editor
+                    editFocused = true
                 }
             }
             if case .image(let filename) = item.content, !multiple {
@@ -544,6 +546,9 @@ struct PanelView: View {
 
     // MARK: - Edit
 
+    /// The editor is a ComposerView too, so it behaves exactly like the main
+    /// input: Return saves, Shift+Return inserts a newline, Esc cancels, and
+    /// pasting goes through the same working path.
     @ViewBuilder
     private var editModal: some View {
         if let item = editingItem {
@@ -553,14 +558,18 @@ struct PanelView: View {
                 VStack(alignment: .leading, spacing: 12) {
                     Text("Edit")
                         .font(.headline)
-                    TextEditor(text: $editText)
+                    ComposerView(
-                        .font(.callout)
+                        text: $editText,
-                        .scrollContentBackground(.hidden)
+                        isFocused: $editFocused,
-                        .frame(minHeight: 120, maxHeight: 280)
+                        height: $editHeight,
-                        .padding(8)
+                        placeholder: "",
-                        .background(Theme.rowSwiftUI)
+                        onSubmit: { saveEdit(item) },
-                        .cornerRadius(8)
+                        onEscape: { dismissEditor() }
-                        .focused($focusedField, equals: .editor)
+                    )
+                    .frame(height: editHeight)
+                    .padding(8)
+                    .background(Theme.rowSwiftUI)
+                    .cornerRadius(8)
                     HStack {
                         Spacer()
                         Button("Cancel") { dismissEditor() }
@@ -595,6 +604,7 @@ struct PanelView: View {
     private func dismissEditor() {
         editingItem = nil
         editText = ""
+        editFocused = false
         composerFocused = true
     }
 
@@ -642,6 +652,7 @@ struct PanelView: View {
     private func dismissNewWorkspace() {
         showNewWorkspace = false
         newWorkspaceName = ""
+        focusedField = nil
         composerFocused = true
     }
 
@@ -715,6 +726,9 @@ struct PanelView: View {
                 isFocused: $composerFocused,
                 height: $composerHeight,
                 placeholder: "Add a note or prompt (\(store.activeSection.name))",
+                // A modal field (search, edit, new workspace) or the sync
+                // overlay owns the keyboard; don't steal focus back mid-edit.
+                canStealFocus: focusedField == nil && !showSync && editingItem == nil,
                 onSubmit: submit,
                 onEscape: {
                     if selection.isEmpty {
@@ -837,6 +851,7 @@ struct PanelView: View {
             focusedField = .search
         } else {
             search = ""
+            focusedField = nil
             composerFocused = true
         }
     }
@@ -881,3 +896,15 @@ struct PanelView: View {
         return (try? AttributedString(markdown: string, options: options)) ?? AttributedString(string)
     }
 }
+
+/// Sync status lives in its own view so a `SyncService` publish cannot
+/// invalidate the panel's list. Watching it from `PanelView`'s body meant every
+/// sync event — including the 5-second poll — re-rendered every row.
+private struct SyncDot: View {
+    @ObservedObject private var sync = SyncService.shared
+
+    var body: some View {
+        Image(systemName: "arrow.triangle.2.circlepath")
+            .foregroundStyle(sync.code == nil ? Color.secondary : Color.accentColor)
+    }
+}

Sources/Prompt/SyncService.swift

@@ -193,13 +193,20 @@ final class SyncService: ObservableObject {
 
     private func poll() {
         guard !isSyncing, let code, let versionURL = endpoint("/api/sync/\(code)/version") else { return }
+        // A cached /version would keep reporting the version the client already
+        // has, so polls must always hit the network. The responses are a few
+        // bytes; letting CFNetwork write them to the disk cache every 5 s only
+        // adds churn.
+        var versionRequest = URLRequest(url: versionURL)
+        versionRequest.cachePolicy = .reloadIgnoringLocalCacheData
+        versionRequest.timeoutInterval = 15
         Task {
             do {
                 // Cheap poll first: the full payload can be megabytes of
                 // base64 images, so only download it when the version moved.
-                let (versionData, versionResponse) = try await URLSession.shared.data(from: versionURL)
+                let (versionData, versionResponse) = try await URLSession.shared.data(for: versionRequest)
                 if (versionResponse as? HTTPURLResponse)?.statusCode == 404 {
-                    lastError = "Sync group no longer exists on the server"
+                    setError("Sync group no longer exists on the server")
                     return
                 }
                 guard let versionHTTP = versionResponse as? HTTPURLResponse, versionHTTP.statusCode == 200 else {
@@ -208,12 +215,15 @@ final class SyncService: ObservableObject {
                 }
                 let remoteVersion = try JSONDecoder().decode([String: Int64].self, from: versionData)["version"] ?? 0
                 guard remoteVersion > lastVersion else {
-                    lastError = nil
+                    setError(nil)
                     return
                 }
                 syncLog("poll remote v\(remoteVersion) local v\(lastVersion) — fetching payload")
                 guard let payloadURL = endpoint("/api/sync/\(code)") else { return }
-                let (data, response) = try await URLSession.shared.data(from: payloadURL)
+                var payloadRequest = URLRequest(url: payloadURL)
+                payloadRequest.cachePolicy = .reloadIgnoringLocalCacheData
+                payloadRequest.timeoutInterval = 30
+                let (data, response) = try await URLSession.shared.data(for: payloadRequest)
                 guard let http = response as? HTTPURLResponse, http.statusCode == 200 else { return }
                 let remote = try JSONDecoder().decode(SyncGetResponse.self, from: data)
                 if let payload = remote.data {
@@ -221,15 +231,25 @@ final class SyncService: ObservableObject {
                 } else {
                     lastVersion = remote.version
                 }
-                lastError = nil
+                setError(nil)
             } catch {
                 syncLog("poll failed: \(error.localizedDescription)")
                 // Polling errors are transient; stay quiet unless nothing ever worked.
-                if lastSyncedAt == nil { lastError = "Cannot reach sync server" }
+                if lastSyncedAt == nil { setError("Cannot reach sync server") }
             }
         }
     }
 
+    /// `@Published` fires on every assignment, even when the value is
+    /// unchanged. The 5-second poll would otherwise republish `lastError`
+    /// forever, and since `PanelView` observes this object, the whole panel
+    /// (list, rows, overlays) re-rendered every 5 seconds — the app grew to
+    /// ~190 MB and ~90 ms of layout per poll over five days of uptime.
+    private func setError(_ message: String?) {
+        guard lastError != message else { return }
+        lastError = message
+    }
+
     private func restartPolling() {
         pollTimer?.invalidate()
         pollTimer = nil