ejfox's dotfiles

Terminal-first development environment optimized for speed-of-thought computing. Everything is fuzzy-searchable, keyboard-driven, and designed to get out of your way.

Quick Start

git clone https://github.com/ejfox/dotfiles.git ~/.dotfiles
cd ~/.dotfiles
./sync-dotfiles.sh

Dependencies (install via homebrew):

brew install neovim tmux zsh fzf ripgrep fd bat lsd zoxide
brew install --cask ghostty

What's Here

~/.dotfiles/
├── .zshrc              # Shell config (aliases, PATH, prompt)
├── .tmux.conf          # Terminal multiplexer
├── .config/
│   ├── nvim/           # Neovim (LazyVim-based)
│   ├── ghostty/        # Terminal emulator
│   ├── yazi/           # File manager
│   └── ...
├── bin/                # Custom scripts
└── tips.txt            # Cheatsheet (shown randomly on startup)

Philosophy

Why These Tools?

Tool	Why Not the Alternative
Neovim	VS Code is slow and not terminal-native
Tmux	Terminal tabs don't persist across restarts
Zsh	Fish isn't POSIX-compatible, Bash lacks features
Ghostty	Fast (Zig), GPU-accelerated, good defaults
LazyVim	Sensible defaults, easy to customize, well-maintained

Core Ideas

Fuzzy find everything. Don't navigate folder trees—search. vs finds files, vg searches content, o opens notes.

Pane-based workflow. One tmux session, multiple panes visible at once. Editor, terminal, logs, server—all on screen together.

Popup workflows. C-a g opens lazygit floating over your panes. Do your thing, close it, layout untouched.

Single-buffer file management. oil.nvim opens directories as editable buffers. Delete a line = delete the file. No sidebar.

Same keys everywhere. C-h/j/k/l moves between vim splits AND tmux panes seamlessly.

Daily Workflow

Opening Files

v              # Open neovim
vs             # Fuzzy find files (with preview)
vg             # Grep file contents, jump to match
o              # Fuzzy find Obsidian notes
r              # Recent files across all projects

File Management (oil.nvim)

From any file in neovim:

-              # Open parent directory
<CR>           # Open file/directory
(edit line)    # Rename file
(delete line)  # Delete file
g.             # Toggle hidden files

This is the key insight: the filesystem IS the buffer. Vim motions work on files.

Tmux Essentials

C-a            # Prefix key (not C-b, easier to reach)
C-h/j/k/l      # Move between panes (works in vim too!)
C-a g          # Lazygit popup
C-a S          # Scratch terminal popup
C-a Space      # tmux-thumbs (copy any text with hints)
C-a -          # Split pane vertically
C-a _          # Split pane horizontally

Git

C-a g          # Lazygit popup (preferred)
gs             # git status
ga             # git add
gc             # git commit
gp             # git push

In lazygit, press a for AI-generated commit messages (uses Claude).

gd             # Go to definition
gr             # Go to references
K              # Hover documentation
<leader>ca     # Code actions
<leader>rn     # Rename symbol

Key Config Decisions

Tmux: C-a prefix instead of C-b

C-b requires moving your hand off home row. C-a is right there. To go to beginning of line (normally C-a in shell), use C-a a.

Neovim: Native LSP, not wrapped in Telescope

Many configs route gd through fuzzy finders. This config uses vim.lsp.buf.definition directly. Fewer layers = faster and more reliable.

File trees (NERDTree, neo-tree) eat screen space and encourage "browsing." oil.nvim encourages "acting"—you're always in a buffer using vim motions.

vim-tmux-navigator

Same C-h/j/k/l keys navigate both vim splits and tmux panes. No mental overhead about which context you're in.

Lazy loading everything

Neovim starts in <100ms despite 40+ plugins. Everything loads on first use, not startup.

LLM Integration

AI is used as suggestion engine, not autopilot:

ai-commit: Generates 3 commit message options, you pick one
morning-ritual: Suggests pomodoros ranked by priority, you select
startup oracle: Daily I Ching-style wisdom based on your tasks

All outputs are cached to avoid slow/expensive repeated API calls.

Customization

Adding aliases

Edit ~/.dotfiles/.zshrc, then source ~/.zshrc.

Adding Neovim plugins

Create a file in ~/.config/nvim/lua/plugins/your-plugin.lua:

return {
  {
    "author/plugin-name",
    event = "VeryLazy",  -- lazy load
    opts = {
      -- config here
    },
  },
}

Changing tmux bindings

Edit ~/.dotfiles/.tmux.conf, then tmux source ~/.tmux.conf.

Secrets

API keys go in ~/.env (gitignored), never in dotfiles:

# ~/.env
export ANTHROPIC_API_KEY="sk-..."
export OPENAI_API_KEY="sk-..."

The .zshrc sources this file automatically.

Troubleshooting

Neovim plugins not loading: Run :Lazy sync

Tmux changes not applying: Run tmux source ~/.tmux.conf

LSP not working: Check :LspInfo and :Mason for missing servers

"Command not found": Ensure /opt/homebrew/bin is in PATH

File Reference

File	Purpose
`.zshrc`	Shell aliases, PATH, prompt config
`.tmux.conf`	Tmux keybindings, plugins, appearance
`.config/nvim/`	Neovim config (LazyVim + custom plugins)
`.config/ghostty/`	Terminal appearance, shaders
`.startup.sh`	MOTD shown on terminal open
`bin/`	Custom scripts (ai-commit, morning-ritual, etc)
`tips.txt`	Cheatsheet, shown randomly on startup
`CLAUDE.md`	Context for AI assistants working on this repo

Other Docs

CLAUDE.md - Detailed notes for AI pair programming
tips.txt - All keybindings and shortcuts
WORKFLOWS.md - Advanced CLI pipelines (obs, pub, llm)
STARTUP_DOCS.md - How the startup script works

Minimal config, maximum velocity.

dotfiles