Journey of collaborating on the Commander plugin with phibr0 and Johnny

Commander is an Obsidian plugin built to let users add and manage commands across many parts of the app’s interface—left ribbon, mobile quick actions, status bar, editor and file menus, and a newly released Explorer pane command. Its core value is UI flexibility: instead of scattering separate “add-command” plugins for each UI surface, Commander consolidates them into one polished system that makes it easier to add or remove command entries without hunting through settings.

The project began as a consolidation effort. Earlier, a customizable sidebar plugin existed for the left ribbon, while other developers created variants for other UI areas such as right-click menus and status/title bars. The idea behind Commander was to unify those capabilities into a single plugin that works across the interface, while also improving the experience. The team set two guiding goals: centralize command-injection plugins for different parts of Obsidian’s UI, and reduce the friction of configuring those command placements.

Collaboration shaped both the workflow and the product. With team members in different time zones, work ran asynchronously using an iterative approach that paired design and feature development to create fast feedback loops. Task management used ClickUp with a Kanban flow (backlog → to do → in progress → close), while design discussions happened in Figma through comment threads tied to specific UI regions. Code work moved through GitHub, and user feedback arrived via Google Forms and pre-made GitHub issue forms.

Design decisions were driven by two principles: keep Commander’s UI consistent with Obsidian’s core design language, and minimize “interaction cost”—the mental and physical effort required to complete a task. That thinking shows up in concrete UI changes. For example, adding a command to the ribbon used to require navigating through multiple settings menus and scanning for the right plugin panel. Commander replaces that with a hover-based “plus” affordance near the ribbon’s empty space, letting users perform the action closer to the target UI element. Another example targets hiding commands: rather than burying the action in a generic settings submenu, Commander surfaces “hide command” controls within the specific ribbon menu where the command lives, with the team considering a future right-click workflow directly on the ribbon.

On the engineering side, the plugin uses TypeScript and Visual Studio Code, with Preact chosen over React for size and mobile performance reasons—Commander stays under half the size of a typical React-based plugin. The team also reflected on what went well and what needs improvement: the collaboration process worked smoothly because expectations were aligned early and the project scope stayed manageable, but design files needed better organization and code needed cleanup.

Looking ahead, Commander’s roadmap focuses on improving macros (currently commands plus basic delays, with plans for editor-focused actions like typing), addressing GitHub issues, and continuing small UX refinements. The team’s advice centers on setting expectations early, designing with feasibility in mind so developers can implement efficiently, and sharing ideas early in community spaces with enough mockups or wireframes to ground the discussion. The result is a plugin that aims to feel native to Obsidian while making command configuration faster, more consistent, and easier to maintain across devices.