Editor

The editor is a thin client over the device-owned image. It does not own a separate shadow runtime. It opens one helper-owned control session, sends source, asks the device for inspection data, and gets out of the way.

Core Commands

Connect Device (editor command)

Layer: tooling
Behavior: Finds or uses the configured serial port, starts the helper, and enters the structured control session.
Example:

Froth: Connect Device

Send Selection / Form (editor command)

Layer: tooling
Behavior: Sends the current selected text or enclosing form to the connected device for evaluation. This is the normal edit-loop command.
Example:

to pulse with pin [
  gpio.high: pin;
  ms: 75;
  gpio.low: pin
]

Send File (editor command)

Layer: tooling
Behavior: Sends the whole file through the reset-and-eval path when supported by the connected firmware. Use it when you want the file to be the current session shape rather than one additive form.
Example:

Froth: Send File

Interrupt (editor command)

Layer: tooling
Behavior: Sends the interrupt path to a running evaluation and returns the editor session to a usable prompt if the target is still responsive.
Example:

Froth: Interrupt

Inspection

The editor exposes the same inspection surface as the prompt:

• Words
• See Binding
• Show Core Binding
• Show Slot Info
• Save Snapshot
• Restore Snapshot
• Dangerous Wipe Snapshot

These commands call into the live target. They do not inspect a stale host-side copy of the image.

Settings

froth.cliPath (setting)

Layer: tooling
Behavior: Optional absolute path to the CLI binary. Leave it empty when froth is on PATH.

froth.port (setting)

Layer: tooling
Behavior: Optional preferred serial port. Leave it empty to auto-connect when one supported device is visible or to choose from a prompt when several are visible.

Recovery

If the target is running old code or the serial session is unsettled, start with Interrupt. If that does not settle the helper, use Force Reconnect. If saved state is bad after reboot, use the safe-boot path, inspect boot, and run dangerous.wipe only when you are intentionally returning to the base image.

Extension Identity

The public extension identity is NikolaiKozak.froth. If VS Code cannot find the CLI on PATH, set froth.cliPath to the absolute path of the installed binary.

The extension is deliberately thin. Syntax highlighting, send commands, inspection commands, interrupt, and recovery all point back at the connected target. There is no hidden host-side interpreter whose state needs to be reconciled with the board.