core: add message shape design options for v2 prompt hooks

Document two approaches for handling synthetic messages in prompt hooks:
- Option 1: Separate PromptMessage type for lightweight prompt surgery
- Option 2: PromptEditor API with append/prepend/insert mutators

This enables plugin developers to inject instructions or context into prompts without manually fabricating message IDs and timestamps. The design supports resumable sessions while keeping the API simple for common prompt manipulation use cases.
This commit is contained in:
Dax Raad
2026-04-05 19:12:27 -04:00
parent 163a9e85b5
commit 03b7c2d3fb
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@@ -12,3 +12,88 @@ Make it `keymappings`, closer to neovim. Can be layered like `<leader>abc`. Comm
_Why_
Currently its keybindings that have an `id` like `message_redo` and then a command can use that or define it's own binding. While some keybindings are just used with `.match` in arbitrary key handlers and there is no info what the key is used for, except the binding id maybe. It also is unknown in which context/scope what binding is active, so a plugin like `which-key` is nearly impossible to get right.
## Message Shape
Problem:
- stored messages need enough data to replay and resume a session later
- prompt hooks often just want to append a synthetic user/assistant message
- today that means faking ids, timestamps, and request metadata
### Option 1: Two Message Shapes
Keep `User` / `Assistant` for stored history, but clean them up.
```ts
type User = {
role: "user"
time: { created: number }
request: {
agent: string
model: ModelRef
variant?: string
format?: OutputFormat
system?: string
tools?: Record<string, boolean>
}
}
type Assistant = {
role: "assistant"
run: { agent: string; model: ModelRef; path: { cwd: string; root: string } }
usage: { cost: number; tokens: Tokens }
result: { finish?: string; error?: Error; structured?: unknown; kind: "reply" | "summary" }
}
```
Add a separate transient `PromptMessage` for prompt surgery.
```ts
type PromptMessage = {
role: "user" | "assistant"
parts: PromptPart[]
}
```
Plugin hook example:
```ts
prompt.push({
role: "user",
parts: [{ type: "text", text: "Summarize the tool output above and continue." }],
})
```
Tradeoff: prompt hooks get easy lightweight messages, but there are now two message shapes.
### Option 2: Prompt Mutators
Keep `User` / `Assistant` as the stored history model.
Prompt hooks do not build messages directly. The runtime gives them prompt mutators.
```ts
type PromptEditor = {
append(input: { role: "user" | "assistant"; parts: PromptPart[] }): void
prepend(input: { role: "user" | "assistant"; parts: PromptPart[] }): void
appendTo(target: "last-user" | "last-assistant", parts: PromptPart[]): void
insertAfter(messageID: string, input: { role: "user" | "assistant"; parts: PromptPart[] }): void
insertBefore(messageID: string, input: { role: "user" | "assistant"; parts: PromptPart[] }): void
}
```
Plugin hook examples:
```ts
prompt.append({
role: "user",
parts: [{ type: "text", text: "Summarize the tool output above and continue." }],
})
```
```ts
prompt.appendTo("last-user", [{ type: "text", text: BUILD_SWITCH }])
```
Tradeoff: avoids a second full message type and avoids fake ids/timestamps, but moves more magic into the hook API.