Is it possible to use mini.extra explorer picker without changing cwd?

[jason0x43]

Contributing guidelines

• I have read CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md

Module(s)

mini.extra

Question

Is it possible to use the mini.extra explorer picker without having it change cwd? For new projects, or ones I'm not as familiar with, I really like being able to browse through the project structure rather than using the files or git pickers to directly find a file. However, if I ever open a file in a subdirectory with explorer it changes the cwd, which then makes the file picker behave differently (because cwd changed).

[echasnovski]

I can not reproduce the change in the working directory with the described steps:

• Start Neovim in one directory. Let's say '/home/user/dir1'. Executing :pwd shows '/home/user/dir1'.
• Execute :Pick explorer cwd='/home/user/dir2'.
• Choose a subdirectory 'subdir'. The picker now shows entries of '/home/user/dir2/subdir'.
• Choose a file 'file'. The picker stops, file '/home/user/dir2/subdir/file' is opened.
• Executing :pwd still shows '/home/user/dir1'.

Do you, by any chance, have "auto root" set up? With 'mini.nvim' it is a part of 'mini.misc' as setup_auto_root().

[jason0x43]

You're right! It was something else in my config. I had assumed from reading the explorer documentation ("Choosing a directory navigates inside it, changing picker's items and current working directory") that this was normal behavior.

I have an autocommand that runs on BufReadPost with the goal of making buffer names relative:

vim.api.nvim_create_autocmd('BufReadPost', {
  pattern = '*',
  group = group,
  callback = function()
    vim.cmd('silent! lcd .')
    print("ran lcd")
  end,
  desc = "Make buffer's name a relative path",
})

That works fine with other pickers and with normal vim file open commands, but when using explorer that autocommand results in the global cwd being changed.

After a bit of testing, it doesn't look like I need that autocommand. I added it a couple of years ago, but I don't recall why, so I'll just drop it. 🙂

[echasnovski]

I had assumed from reading the explorer documentation ("Choosing a directory navigates inside it, changing picker's items and current working directory") that this was normal behavior.

Ah, I see. It was meant as "... picker's items and picker's current working directory". The picker's source can define its own "current working directory" to make it easier to work with items later.

After a bit of testing, it doesn't look like I need that autocommand. I added it a couple of years ago, but I don't recall why, so I'll just drop it. 🙂

Well, this indeed is a workaround to have buffer names shown in :buffers as relative to current working directory. This can be not the case depending on how file was opened in a buffer. For what it is worth, 'mini.nvim' modules ('mini.pick', 'mini.files', and others) do try to take this into account and have buffer's name be as short as possible in the output of :buffers.