Immutable project search (emacs `occur` style)

[pasunboneleve]

Check for existing issues

• Completed

Describe the feature

Zed's current Project search opens a new mutable buffer where each matching line is preceded and followed by two more adjacent lines to provide context.

Emacs's occur command opens a new immutable buffer with no context lines. Only matching lines are shown, and pressing return opens a new buffer for the file where the match was found, and the cursor on the match. The new buffer appears in split screen, so it is convenient to jump from the results buffer to the target file buffer.

This seemingly simple command makes moving between matching files extremely fast, with a human in control and unobstructed by using a mouse. It would be nice if it could be recreated in Zed.

Zed Version and System Specs

Zed: v0.169.0 (Zed Preview)
OS: Linux Wayland fedora 41
Memory: 31 GiB
Architecture: x86_64
GPU: Intel(R) UHD Graphics 630 (CFL GT2) || Intel open-source Mesa driver || Mesa 24.3.2

If applicable, add mockups / screenshots to help present your vision of the feature

Emacs documentation on `occur

[jansol]

What part of this are you specifically asking for (and how does the current functionality fail to satisfy that use case)?

FWIW you can already use the keyboard to navigate the excerpts in a multibuffer. And you can jump to a buffer with the corresponding file open at the cursor position by pressing alt+enter as indicated by the hint in the file header of the multibuffer:

[pasunboneleve]

Personal preference:

• I like way less detail. Just the filename and the line where the match is found is enough. I like more results in one pageful, without distractions. It helps me remember which matches I already visited;
• Enter doesn't require me to remember Alt-Enter. Yes, there's the reminder in the UI. It didn't work first time I tried, now it does. I would rather not have the reminder occupy space and instead have more matches displayed;
• As much as possible, I want to use the same keystrokes for related behaviour independently of context. I noticed I can't use ctrl-s to navigate matches (as I already assigned it to search::SelectNextMatch). I have to come up with a new binding. And then remember it. Well, in an immutable pane without extra context lines arrows or ctrl-n/ctrl-p would be sufficient.