Agent skill · software engineering · aiskillstore
configuring-tmux
Configures tmux status bars, installs frameworks and plugins, adds widgets and scripts, and sets up multiple status bars. Use when working with oh-my-tmux, Catppuccin, or tmux-powerline; adding weather/finance/clock/news widgets; troubleshooting why bar changes aren't appearing; or setting up tmux on a new machine.
Why this skill is useful
Adds specific tmux configuration patterns and scripts for status bars that the AI wouldn't reliably generate on its own.
What it needs
Requires git installed locally. About 3k tokens when loaded. Last updated 2026-08-07. 405 stars on the source repository.
What this skill does
Configuring tmux Step 0: Choose a Framework Ask the user which framework they want before touching any config. Option 1: oh-my-tmux Theming via tmuxconftheme variables in ~/.tmux.conf.local — never edit ~/.tmux.conf Gotcha: its theming layer owns bar 0 and overrides raw set -g status-right — use status-format[] for extra bars Option 2: Catppuccin (TPM-based, no clone needed) Module list controls bar 0 — add custom #() calls via status-right-append Extra bars use status-format[] directly Option 3: tmux-powerline Requires Nerd Font or Powerline-patched font Segments live in ~/.config/tmux-powerline/segments/ Option 4: User-provided framework Ask for: repo URL, install method, where customizations live, how it handles status content. Then apply the patterns below. --- Plugin Setup (all frameworks) --- Multiple Status Bars tmux 3.2+ supports 2–5 bars. The correct syntax is status-format[] array — not status2-right (invalid, will error). With status-position top and status 3: Verify: tmux show-options -g status (must equal your total bar count) --- Widget Scripts Single-line output rule Scripts in #() must emit one line. Multi-line output corrupts the bar. Caching pattern (required for network scripts) World clocks (no cache needed) Rotating news ticker Finance widget (Yahoo Finance v8) Use -A "Mozilla/5.0" — Yahoo blocks default curl UA: --- oh-my-tmux: Bar 0 Reference --- Common Mistakes Mistake Fix --------- ----- set -g status-right overridden Use tmuxconfthemestatusright= (oh-my-tmux) or framework equivalent status2-right → invalid option Use set -g status-format[1] "..." New bars not visible tmux show-options -g status must equal bar count Bar appears blank Script must output exactly one non-empty line Script works in terminal, blank in bar tmux #() has minimal PATH — use ~/ or absolute paths %% vs % confusion %% in tmuxconftheme; %H:%M directly in status-format[] Reload
How to use it
Reference it in AdaL, Claude Code, Cursor or any coding agent — nothing to install:
@skills aiskillstore/configuring-tmux