What is the 'Neural Link'?

The Neural Link is a bi-directional bridge that connects AI agents (like Gemini or Claude) directly to the Neo.mjs runtime. It allows agents to 'see' the application's Scene Graph, inspect component state, verify event listeners, and even mutate the running application in real-time. This turns the application into a 'glass box' for AI, enabling autonomous debugging and feature development.

Why is Neo.mjs called an 'Application Engine' instead of a framework?

Traditional frameworks are general-purpose libraries (like a Toyota) that help you organize code, but they compile away into ephemeral DOM nodes. Neo.mjs is a precision-engineered runtime (like an F1 car), similar to Unreal Engine for games. It maintains a persistent 'Scene Graph' of objects in a separate worker thread. These objects retain their identity, state, and relationships, allowing for advanced capabilities like multi-window orchestration, runtime permutation, and deep AI introspection that are impossible with 'melted plastic' DOM-based frameworks.

What is 'Context Engineering'?

Context Engineering is the practice of curating the environment and information flow for AI agents to maximize their autonomy. In Neo.mjs, this is implemented via three Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers: a Knowledge Base for semantic code understanding, a Memory Core for learning from past sessions, and a GitHub Workflow server for project management. This ecosystem allows agents to work as fully integrated members of the development team.

What is 'Object Permanence' in the context of Neo.mjs?

In Neo.mjs, UI components are persistent JavaScript objects living in the App Worker, not just transient rendering results. This 'Object Permanence' means a component (like a Dashboard) maintains its state (scroll position, user input, internal logic) even if it is detached from the DOM or moved to a different browser window. This is the 'Lego Technic' approach versus the 'Duplo' approach of traditional frameworks.

What is an 'Agent Operating System'?

Neo.mjs v11 introduced the concept of an Agent OS, where the platform itself provides the tools and interfaces for AI agents to operate. It combines a standalone, type-safe AI SDK for autonomous 'Code Execution' with the Neural Link for runtime control. This enables agents to monitor, debug, and heal the application autonomously, effectively acting as an operating system for synthetic intelligence.

How does Neo.mjs handle multi-window applications?

Neo.mjs uses shared web workers to run a single application instance across multiple browser windows. All windows share the same application state and data in real-time. Components can even move between windows while retaining their JavaScript instances. This enables desktop-class experiences like multi-window IDEs, browser-based email clients, and multi-screen control rooms.

What makes Neo.mjs different from React, Angular, or Vue?

Neo.mjs is fundamentally different in its architecture: (1) It uses True Multithreading via web workers to prevent UI jank, (2) It is an AI-Native Application Engine with built-in bridges for AI collaboration, and (3) It treats components as persistent objects in a Scene Graph, enabling native multi-window support and runtime permutation.

Frontmatter

id	8980
title	Fix Grid Keyboard Navigation and Focus Layout Shift
state	Closed
labels	bugairefactoring
assignees	tobiu
createdAt	Feb 4, 2026, 12:31 PM
updatedAt	Feb 4, 2026, 12:32 PM
githubUrl	https://github.com/neomjs/neo/issues/8980
author	tobiu
commentsCount	1
parentIssue	null
subIssues	[]
subIssuesCompleted	0
subIssuesTotal	0
blockedBy	[]
blocking	[]
closedAt	Feb 4, 2026, 12:32 PM

Fix Grid Keyboard Navigation and Focus Layout Shift

Name: Neo.mjs Application Engine
Author: Neo.mjs

Closed v12.0.0 bugairefactoring

tobiu commented on Feb 4, 2026, 12:31 PM

Problem: Keyboard navigation in the grid is broken. Selecting a row or cell no longer triggers focus on the grid body wrapper, preventing KeyNavigation from capturing arrow key events. Additionally, focusing the body wrapper manually causes a layout shift where the header toolbar is scrolled out of view.

Scope:

Focus Restoration: Ensure GridBody receives focus on row/cell clicks.
Layout Stability: Implement preventScroll support for focus() to stop the browser from scrolling the parent container.

Changes Required:

src/main/DomAccess.mjs: Update focus to support preventScroll.
src/component/Base.mjs: Update focus signature to pass preventScroll.
src/grid/Body.mjs: Call this.focus(this.vdom.id, false, true) in onRowClick.

tobiu added the bug label on Feb 4, 2026, 12:31 PM

tobiu added the ai label on Feb 4, 2026, 12:31 PM

tobiu added the refactoring label on Feb 4, 2026, 12:31 PM

tobiu referenced in commit 830bbb5 - "fix: Restore Grid keyboard navigation and prevent layout shift on focus (#8980)" on Feb 4, 2026, 12:31 PM

tobiu Feb 4, 2026, 12:31 PM

Input from Gemini 3 Pro:

✦ Fixed Grid Keyboard Navigation & Layout Stability

Focus Restoration:

Updated GridBody.onRowClick to explicitly call this.focus(this.vdom.id). This ensures the grid wrapper (which has tabIndex="-1") receives focus upon interaction, re-enabling keyboard navigation events.

Layout Shift Prevention:

Identified that focusing the grid body caused the browser to scroll the parent GridContainer, pushing the HeaderToolbar out of view.

Updated Neo.main.DomAccess.focus to support the {preventScroll: true} option for the native HTMLElement.focus() method.

Updated Neo.component.Base.focus to accept and pass the preventScroll argument.

Applied preventScroll: true to the GridBody focus call.

This resolves the regression where row selection broke arrow-key navigation and caused visual jarring.

tobiu assigned to @tobiu on Feb 4, 2026, 12:31 PM

tobiu closed this issue on Feb 4, 2026, 12:32 PM