Skip to Content
Getting Started

Getting Started

This is the five-minute tour. Once Damson is installed, open it and try the workflows below — they cover the controls you’ll reach for every day.

The shortcuts you’ll use most

ActionShortcut
New tab⌘T
Close tab⌘W
Next / previous tab⌘⇧] / ⌘⇧[
Split pane horizontally⌘D
Split pane vertically⌘⇧D
Focus pane (left/right/up/down)⌘⌥ + arrow
Swap pane (left/right/up/down)⌘⇧ + arrow
Apply preset layout 1–7⌘⌃1 … ⌘⌃7
Find in scrollback⌘F
Jump to previous / next prompt⌘↑ / ⌘↓
Copy last command output⌘⇧C

Every shortcut is remappable. Open Settings to rebind keys to taste.

Split your first workspace

  1. Press ⌘D to split the current pane into two side by side.
  2. Press ⌘⇧D to split one of them top-and-bottom.
  3. Move focus with ⌘⌥ + an arrow key; rearrange panes with ⌘⇧ + an arrow key.

Panes form a tree, so you can nest splits as deeply as you like and Damson keeps the geometry sensible. When you’ve found a layout you like, you don’t have to rebuild it by hand next time — see below.

Apply a layout in one keystroke

Instead of dragging splits around, press ⌘⌃1 to drop into the headline Columns 20 / 60 / 20 layout instantly. There are seven presets on ⌘⌃1–⌘⌃7 — read Preset Layouts for the full set.

Damson understands your shell’s prompt marks (OSC 133), so you can move through a session by command rather than by line:

  • ⌘↑ / ⌘↓ jump between prompts.
  • ⌘⇧C copies the output of the last command.
  • ⌘F searches the scrollback with a live overlay.
  • ⌘-click any file path in the output to open it (with optional :line jump). See Shell Integration.

Make it yours

Open Settings to set your font, theme, cursor, background opacity and blur, ligatures, animations, scrollback size, and more. The full list is in Settings.

Where to next

Last updated on
InstallationOverview