Errors are said in words, and a refusal names what it takes

A failure read `Del k|j: InvalidArgument`, `Kill: NoSuchCommand`, `ill-formed control message`, or nothing at all. reportError now spells an error's name as words, and the refusals name their accepted forms: pty/ctl lists its verbs, a flag file takes 1 or 0, a setting word takes on or off, Del takes k, j or nothing, Repl takes - or a language. Kill with nothing to stop says so, /focus says pane, a Look that found nothing says no match, and pty/run on a command pane says it is not a shell. A ctl write's failure has room for the Repl list and is cut between words, the Repl word at a character.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5.5 <[email protected]>

1 files changed, 9 insertions, 5 deletions

diff --git a/src/builtins.zig b/src/builtins.zig
index 79c45325..2f34c647 100644
--- a/src/builtins.zig
+++ b/src/builtins.zig
@@ -319,8 +319,9 @@ test "Kill stops the commands pardes typed, bare all and by name those that matc
         }
     };
     p.host = .{ .vtable = &killed.vtable };
-    // Nothing running: nothing to stop, and never the shell.
+    // Nothing running: nothing to stop, and never the shell; said.
     try std.testing.expectEqual(@as(usize, 0), killed.count(p, "Kill"));
+    try std.testing.expectEqualStrings("Kill: nothing running", p.panes[term].?.msg[0..p.panes[term].?.msg_len]);
     _ = exec.execute(p, term, "make -j8");
     while (p.nextEffect()) |_| {}
     // Typed but not started yet (no C mark): not running.
@@ -488,7 +489,10 @@ pub const Kill = struct {
         }
         if (stopped) return;
         if (jobless) return c.p.reportFailure(c.id, "Kill: no job to signal (its shell runs it without job control)");
-        if (names.len > 0) c.p.reportError(c.id, "Kill", error.NoSuchCommand);
+        if (names.len > 0)
+            c.p.reportFailure(c.id, "Kill: no running command has that first word")
+        else // said, but no failure: a script's Kill has nothing left to do
+            c.p.setMessage(c.id, "Kill: nothing running");
     }
 };
 
@@ -804,7 +808,7 @@ pub const Del = struct {
         else if (std.mem.eql(u8, side, "j"))
             below orelse above
         else if (side.len > 0)
-            return c.p.reportError(c.id, "Del k|j", error.InvalidArgument)
+            return c.p.reportFailure(c.id, "Del: takes k, j or nothing")
         else
             null;
         // Someone at the keyboard with a real choice to make is asked, on the
@@ -939,9 +943,9 @@ pub const Repl = struct {
         const named: ?u8 = if (manifest.byName(arg)) |i| if (grammars[i].exts.len > 0) @intCast(i) else null else null;
         const lang: u8 = named orelse {
             var w = std.Io.Writer.fixed(&buf);
-            w.print("Repl: no language \"{s}\"; one of", .{arg[0..@min(arg.len, 32)]}) catch {};
+            w.print("Repl: no language \"{s}\"; - or one of:", .{@import("Messages.zig").clip(arg, 24)}) catch {};
             for (grammars) |g| if (g.exts.len > 0) w.print(" {s}", .{g.name}) catch break;
-            return c.p.reportFailure(c.id, w.buffered());
+            return c.p.reportFailure(c.id, @import("Messages.zig").clip(w.buffered(), 256));
         };
         if (pane.repl) |r| if (r.lang == lang)
             return c.p.setMessage(c.id, std.fmt.bufPrint(&buf, "Repl: {s}", .{exec.replId(&idbuf, pane)}) catch "Repl");