[FEATURE] Add a dedicated theme token for spinner tip text, separate from `subtle`

Status Open
Maintainer reply None cached
Activity 0 comments · opened Aug 19, 2026

Preflight Checklist

  • [x] I have searched existing requests and this feature hasn't been requested yet
  • [x] This is a single feature request (not multiple features)

Problem Statement

While Claude is working, the spinner alternates between actual status text ("what Claude is doing right now") and rotating tips (prefixed with Tip:) about features and shortcuts. Both are rendered in the same de-emphasized style (subtle/inactive token), so visually they're indistinguishable. This makes it hard, especially for newer users, to tell at a glance whether the text is real-time status or an optional tip — you have to consciously read and parse the Tip: prefix every time rather than recognizing it instantly.

Proposed Solution

Add a dedicated theme override token, e.g. spinnerTipText (with a paired spinnerTipTextShimmer for consistency with other shimmer-paired tokens like claude/claudeShimmer), that controls only the color of the tip text — independent of subtle, which is shared across many unrelated UI elements (hints, timestamps, disabled items) and can't be recolored without side effects elsewhere.

Example usage in a custom theme file (~/.claude/themes/<slug>.json):

{
  "name": "my-theme",
  "base": "light",
  "overrides": {
    "spinnerTipText": "#8a6d3b"
  }
}

This would let users make tips visually distinct (different color, or paired with an accent) from real-time status text, without touching any other part of the interface. It follows the existing per-token override model already used for similar cases (promptBorder, planMode, etc.), so it wouldn't introduce a new mechanism — just extend the current one.

Alternative Solutions

Overriding tip content via spinnerTipsOverride to add a visual marker (e.g. an emoji prefix/suffix) works as a workaround, but has a real downside: it replaces the entire tip list, so any future built-in tips (new features, new shortcuts) never surface unless the override list is manually kept in sync with each release. A style-level token would let the default, dynamically-updated tip list stay intact while still being visually distinguishable — no manual maintenance required.

Priority

Low - Nice to have

Feature Category

Interactive mode (TUI)

Use Case Example

_No response_

Additional Context

_No response_

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