mohio

Establish Initial Electron Desktop Shell

Date

2026-03-19

Context

Mohio needed a real product foundation instead of only prototypes. The repository had direction documents and prototype work, but it did not yet have a real desktop application that could serve as the base for later workspace, editing, and assistant workflows.

Change

• Added a standalone desktop/ application built with Electron, React, TypeScript, Vite, and npm.
• Established the initial desktop structure for the Electron main process, secure preload bridge, renderer, and shared types.
• Added a typed window.mohio preload contract with basic app metadata access through getAppInfo().
• Built the first real Mohio shell with a slim top bar, a left document rail, a centered editor area, and a right assistant panel.
• Finalized the top bar around a Mohio workspace label, a centered search field, and a New document primary action.
• Finalized the left sidebar around recent and pinned document placeholders.
• Finalized the editor area around a compact grouped formatting toolbar and a Hello Mohio empty state.
• Finalized the right sidebar around assistant suggestion chips and a simple composer area.
• Refined the shell styling into a calm, neutral, document-first interface with matching sidebar surfaces and restrained controls.
• Updated project documentation to reflect that Mohio is in active development and positioned as a bring-your-own AI workspace that works with Codex and Claude Code.
• Added renderer smoke coverage and a shared preload API contract test for the new desktop foundation.

Decision

Implemented a real Electron desktop shell first instead of continuing with prototype-only work so Mohio would have a stable product base for future milestones. Chose a minimal but coherent shell over a broader first feature set to establish runtime boundaries, UI direction, and shared contracts before layering on workspace and editing behavior.

Impact

Mohio now has a real desktop application foundation in desktop/ that serves as the starting point for the final product. The repository includes a basic but coherent Electron shell, a secure renderer boundary, a minimal assistant-aware document layout, and documentation that matches the current product direction.

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