Bessie

Run more coding agents without babysitting more tabs. Bessie brings every Herdr workspace into one native Mac window and puts the agents waiting on you first.

Download for Mac View on GitHub
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The problem

Agents stop quietly.

An agent asks a question and waits in whichever tab you left it. As more agents run, finding the one that needs you becomes work of its own.

themeclaude · 58×26 · 38s
● Replacing the cream light theme with the paper ladder
edit PaperTheme.swift +42 −8
 
? Run swift test --filter PaperThemeTests
1. Yes 2. Yes, always 3. No
▸
motioncodex · 4m
· applying patch to CowprintField.swift
· 4 files changed, 173 insertions
38/52 passing
servervite dev --host · :5173
VITE v5.4.2 ready in 412 ms
➜ Local: http://localhost:5173/
▸
scratchcodex · 12m
no recognised status from this process
provenance · fallback heuristic
▸

the one waiting on you moves to the top · everything else stays where it is

Every agent. One native window.

Each pane is a real Herdr terminal. Read output, answer prompts, interrupt a run, or keep working without switching apps or losing the rest of the herd.

Needs you · 2
Working · 2
Done · 2
Idle · 1
Unknown · 1
themeclaude · 58×26 · 38s
● Replacing the cream light theme with the paper ladder
edit Sources/Bessie/Theme/PaperTheme.swift +42 −8
 
╭─────────────────────────────────────────╮
│ Run swift test --filter PaperThemeTests │
│ 1. Yes 2. Yes, always 3. No │
╰─────────────────────────────────────────╯
▸
motioncodex · 4m
· applying patch to CowprintField.swift
· 4 files changed, 173 insertions
38/52 passing
servervite dev --host · :5173
VITE v5.4.2 ready in 412 ms
➜ Local: http://localhost:5173/
▸
scratchcodex · 12m
no recognised status from this process
▸
One herd across every connectionLocal and remote Herds share one roster, organized by what needs attention instead of where each one runs.
Work in the real paneSelect an agent and Bessie takes you to its terminal, with the current output and prompt still in place.
Always know where you areEvery row shows its Herd, workspace, tab, and pane, so similarly named agents stay distinct.

The siderail tells you where to look.

It gathers agents from every connected Herd, groups them by state, and puts Needs you first. Every row names the agent and its Herd, workspace, tab, and pane. Select one to jump to its terminal.

Needs youstopped, with a question on screen, waiting on your answer
Workingrunning fine · nothing needed from you
Donefinished · ready for you to review when you want
Idlequiet, with no current activity or request
UnknownBessie cannot tell what this pane is doing, and says so
Needs you · 2

Jump straight to any pane.

Open the command palette and type part of an agent, pane, workspace, project, or command name. Every result includes its location, so the right scratch is easy to spot.

esc
schema · Migrate docs to schema 3herdr-docs / main
snapshots · Fix the flaky snapshot testbessie / tests
scratch · codexbessie / dev
docs sweepproject · 4 panes
Split pane⌃S "
Reconnect ci-boxherd · lost 4m
↑↓ move↵ openpanes · workspaces · projects · herds · commands

One pane, without losing the herd.

Zen mode gives the active terminal the window. The rest collapse to a quiet strip, while the count of agents waiting on you stays visible.

⌘⇧Z
bessie · dev · theme NEEDS YOU·1 elsewhere
read Sources/Bessie/Theme/Theme.swift (182 ln)
 
● Replacing the cream light theme with the paper ladder
edit Sources/Bessie/Theme/PaperTheme.swift +42 −8
 
╭──────────────────────────────────────────────╮
│ Run swift test --filter PaperThemeTests │
│ 1. Yes │
│ 2. Yes, and don't ask again this session │
╰──────────────────────────────────────────────╯
 
▸ 1
2 need you · 2 working
Working
Done4Idle3Unknown1

The herd stays in the menu bar.

Close Bessie's window and your Herdr work keeps running. The menu bar shows what needs you, what is working, and the current totals. Select a row to open its pane.

Built for the Mac

More ways to run the herd.

Bessie adds native tools for launching, organizing, and returning to Herdr work.

Projects are reusable launch recipesDefine folders, tabs, split layouts, pane labels, and starting commands. Launch the recipe on this Mac or a remote Herd as ordinary Herdr work.
Local and remote, one fleetConnect multiple local and SSH Herds. Their workspaces and agents share one sidebar without pretending one connection is another.
Pin it or snooze itKeep important panes at the top, quiet noisy work for a bounded time, and wake it early without changing the underlying Herdr pane.
Native notifications, exact destinationChoose which state changes matter. A notification opens the exact pane that triggered it and never includes terminal contents.

Start local. Connect the Herds you already run.

Bessie 1.0.2 is a signed and notarized app for Apple-silicon Macs running macOS 14 or newer. It includes a compatible Herdr runtime for local work and connects to existing local or SSH Herds. Quit Bessie and the Herdr work keeps running.

Download for Mac View on GitHub

Built with love for Herdr. Read the credits.