Replacing tmux in my dev workflow

Overall reaction to “you might not need tmux”

• Many commenters feel the article mostly shows how hard it is to re‑create tmux with ad‑hoc tools, reinforcing that they do need a multiplexer.
• Others argue the point is not to reimplement tmux, but to avoid putting a protocol‑translating “middlebox” between apps and the terminal so native features (scrollback, titles, notifications) keep working.

Terminal design vs 1970s emulation

• Several people echo criticism that terminals are still emulating VT100‑style hardware, limiting copy/paste, selection, multiline editing, and navigation.
• Some want new protocols or character‑framebuffer approaches, or IDE‑style REPLs and “time‑travel” debugging, rather than ever more elaborate multiplexers.
• Others say terminals are “good enough,” and energy should go into better tmux/terminal interop rather than redesigning the stack.

Alternatives and partial replacements

• Popular alternatives mentioned: Zellij, WezTerm (with built‑in multiplexing and wezterm ssh), Kitty, Ghostty, GNU Screen, abduco/dtach, neovim/Emacs terminals, wm‑level tiling (i3/sway etc.), and session tools like mosh/eternalterminal.
• Some report they’ve completely replaced local tmux with WezTerm/Kitty/Ghostty panes and a tiling WM, using tmux only for remote persistence.
• Others find Zellij or Kitty closer to “tmux done right,” but complain about modal UX, bugs, or heavy configuration.

Persistent sessions & workflow management

• Session persistence is repeatedly cited as the killer feature: surviving SSH drops, laptop sleep, GUI crashes, and letting users reconnect from any device.
• Many power users use multiple named tmux sessions as a “bag of context” (per project, per role) with dozens of windows, scripting, and key‑driven navigation.
• Tools like tmuxinator/byobu and custom scripts automate complex project layouts; commenters doubt shpool/nohup/WM layouts can match this ergonomically.

Pain points with tmux

• Common complaints: awkward scrollback and copy/paste (especially across splits), TERM/terminfo headaches, color/italic issues, extra latency, and limited support for newer protocols and graphics.
• Some agree multiplexers hinder terminal innovation because they must interpret and mutate escape sequences; others see that translation layer as a feature that keeps old hardware and broken apps usable.

Clipboard, OSC52, and security

• Several posts dig into OSC52 clipboard integration as the modern fix for copy/paste through tmux/SSH, while noting inconsistent terminal support and potential security implications.