Proposal: Global Command Palette (Cmd+K)

[Mtze]

Proposal: Global Command Palette (Cmd+K)

Motivation

Navigating PROMPT currently requires clicking through the sidebar, selecting a course, then finding the right phase or settings page. For instructors managing multiple courses or admins overseeing the entire system, this involves a lot of clicking to get to the right place. A global command palette — triggered by Cmd+K (or Ctrl+K on Windows/Linux) — would provide instant, keyboard-driven access to any course, phase, or action in PROMPT.

1. Command Palette

A search overlay that appears on Cmd+K, similar to the command palettes in VS Code, GitHub, or Linear:

• Always accessible: Works from any page in PROMPT
• Fuzzy search: Type a few characters to find courses, phases, students, or settings pages
• Keyboard-driven: Navigate results with arrow keys, select with Enter, dismiss with Escape
• Contextual: Results are scoped to what the current user has access to (respects role permissions)

2. Context-Aware Search

The palette is context-aware based on where the user currently is:

• Inside a course: The palette opens pre-scoped to that course. Searching "Assessment" immediately shows the assessment phase of the current course, not all assessment phases across all courses. The current course context is shown as a removable filter chip (e.g., [iPraktikum ws25] ×).
• Removing context: The user can delete the context chip (backspace or click ×) to switch to a global search across all courses and phases.
• Outside a course (e.g., on the dashboard or admin overview): The palette opens in global mode with no pre-applied context.

This means the common case — finding something within the course you're currently working on — requires minimal typing, while the global search is always one backspace away.

3. Searchable Items

The palette should index and search across:

• Courses: Search by course name or semester tag (e.g., "iPraktikum", "ws25")
• Course phases: Search by phase name and type within a course (e.g., "iPraktikum Assessment", "Interview")
• Settings pages: Jump directly to a course's settings, phase configuration, or phase graph
• Students: Search by name, matriculation number, or email — navigate to their participation details
• Actions: Quick access to common actions (e.g., "Create new course", "Release assessment results")

4. Quick Navigation Shortcuts

In addition to free-text search, the palette should support structured navigation:

• Recently visited pages at the top (no typing needed — just Cmd+K and Enter)
• Category prefixes to narrow results (e.g., > for actions, @ for students, # for courses)
• Breadcrumb-style drill-down: selecting a course narrows results to that course's phases and settings

5. Scope & Permissions

• Results are filtered by the current user's permissions — a lecturer only sees their own courses, an admin sees everything
• Student search is only available to lecturers and admins, not to students themselves
• The palette never exposes data the user couldn't access through normal navigation