feat: add right-click copy context menu to AI chat messages

[pulkitbajaj]

User description

Closes #14655

This PR implements a context menu for the AI chat components, enabling users to copy specific text selections or the entire message via a right-click. Previously, users had no way to interact with the chat text using a mouse.

Steps to test

1. Open the AI Chat window.
2. Select a few words of an AI or User message.
3. Right-click the selection and choose "Copy."
4. Paste into a text editor to verify only the selected text was copied.
5. Right-click a message without any selection and choose "Copy."
6. Paste to verify the entire message was copied.

Mandatory checks

• I own the copyright of the code submitted and I license it under the MIT license
• I manually tested my changes in running JabRef (always required)
• I added JUnit tests for changes (if applicable)
• I added screenshots in the PR description (if change is visible to the user)
• I described the change in CHANGELOG.md in a way that is understandable for the average user (if change is visible to the user)
• I checked the user documentation: Is the information available and up to date? If not, I created an issue at https://github.com/JabRef/user-documentation/issues or, even better, I submitted a pull request updating file(s) in https://github.com/JabRef/user-documentation/tree/main/en.

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PR Type

Enhancement

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Description

• Adds right-click context menu to AI chat messages

• Enables copying selected text or entire message

• Supports UserMessage, AiMessage, and ErrorMessage types

• Integrates with system clipboard for paste functionality

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Diagram Walkthrough

flowchart LR
  User["User right-clicks message"]
  Detect["Detect selection via event filter"]
  Menu["Display context menu"]
  Copy["Copy action triggered"]
  Clipboard["Write to system clipboard"]
  User --> Detect
  Detect --> Menu
  Menu --> Copy
  Copy --> Clipboard

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File Walkthrough

Relevant files

Enhancement

ChatMessageComponent.java Implement context menu with copy functionality                      jabgui/src/main/java/org/jabref/gui/ai/components/aichat/chatmessage/ChatMessageComponent.java Added imports for ContextMenu, MenuItem, Clipboard, and ClipboardContent Implemented setupContextMenu() method to create context menu with copy functionality Added event filter on markdownContentPane to capture text selection on right-click Supports copying selected text or entire message based on selection state Handles multiple message types (UserMessage, AiMessage, ErrorMessage) +66/-0

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PR Compliance Guide 🔍

Below is a summary of compliance checks for this PR:

Security Compliance
🟢	No security concerns identified No security vulnerabilities detected by AI analysis. Human verification advised for critical code.
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🟡	🎫 #13109 🔴 Add Pseudonymization functionality to the CLI Make org.jabref.logic.pseudonymization.Pseudonymization available on the CLI Provide similar CLI experience to the consistency check Follow the implementation pattern of org.jabref.cli.CheckConsistency class
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🏷️ - Compliance label

[qodo-free-for-open-source-projects]

PR Code Suggestions ✨

Explore these optional code suggestions:

Category	Suggestion	Impact
Possible issue	✅ Capture selection state more reliably Suggestion Impact: The commit implements the core idea of the suggestion by moving selection capture logic to the context menu event handler (lines 76-96). However, instead of using setOnContextMenuRequested, it keeps the MOUSE_PRESSED event filter approach. The commit also refactors the implementation significantly: it stores selection in a field (selectedText) instead of contextMenu properties, extracts text immediately rather than storing indices, uses ClipBoardManager instead of direct Clipboard API, and adds ChatMessageUtils for content extraction. While the exact API suggested (setOnContextMenuRequested) was not used, the intention to improve selection capture reliability was addressed through the refactored approach. code diff: @@ -115,9 +94,17 @@ try { int start = markdownTextFlow.getSelectionStartIndex(); int end = markdownTextFlow.getSelectionEndIndex(); - contextMenu.getProperties().put("selection", new int[] {start, end}); - } catch (AssertionError | Exception e) { - contextMenu.getProperties().put("selection", new int[] {-1, -1}); + + String fullText = ChatMessageUtils.getContent(chatMessage.get()).orElse(""); + + if (start >= 0 && end > start && !fullText.isEmpty()) { + this.selectedText = fullText.substring(start, Math.min(end, fullText.length())); + } else { + this.selectedText = ""; + } + } catch (AssertionError | IndexOutOfBoundsException e) { + LOGGER.debug("Failed to extract selection indices for copy action", e); + this.selectedText = ""; } } }); Use the setOnContextMenuRequested event instead of MOUSE_PRESSED to reliably capture the final text selection state before showing the context menu. jabgui/src/main/java/org/jabref/gui/ai/components/aichat/chatmessage/ChatMessageComponent.java [113-123] -markdownContentPane.addEventFilter(MOUSE_PRESSED, event -> { - if (event.isSecondaryButtonDown()) { - try { - int start = markdownTextFlow.getSelectionStartIndex(); - int end = markdownTextFlow.getSelectionEndIndex(); - contextMenu.getProperties().put("selection", new int[] {start, end}); - } catch (AssertionError | Exception e) { - contextMenu.getProperties().put("selection", new int[] {-1, -1}); - } +markdownContentPane.setOnContextMenuRequested(event -> { + if (markdownTextFlow.isSelectionActive()) { + int start = markdownTextFlow.getSelectionStartIndex(); + int end = markdownTextFlow.getSelectionEndIndex(); + contextMenu.getProperties().put("selection", new int[]{start, end}); + } else { + contextMenu.getProperties().put("selection", new int[]{-1, -1}); } + contextMenu.show(markdownContentPane, event.getScreenX(), event.getScreenY()); }); [Suggestion processed] Suggestion importance[1-10]: 8 __ Why: This suggestion correctly identifies a behavioral bug where using MOUSE_PRESSED can capture an incomplete text selection. Moving the logic to setOnContextMenuRequested is the correct approach for this use case, making the feature more reliable and robust, while also simplifying the code.	Medium
General	✅ Refactor clipboard logic and add validation Suggestion Impact: The commit addresses the same clipboard logic area but takes a different approach. Instead of creating a separate copyToClipboard helper method as suggested, it refactors the selection handling by storing selectedText as a field and extracting message content to a utility method (ChatMessageUtils.getContent). The boundary check suggestion (start < fullText.length()) is implemented in line 62, preventing the IndexOutOfBoundsException. While the implementation differs from the exact suggestion, it achieves the same goals of improving code organization and adding validation. code diff: copyItem.setOnAction(_ -> { - int[] selection = (int[]) contextMenu.getProperties().getOrDefault("selection", new int[] {-1, -1}); - int start = selection[0]; - int end = selection[1]; + String textToCopy = !this.selectedText.isEmpty() + ? this.selectedText + : ChatMessageUtils.getContent(chatMessage.get()).orElse(""); - String fullText = switch (chatMessage.get()) { - case UserMessage user -> - user.singleText(); - case AiMessage ai -> - ai.text(); - case ErrorMessage err -> - err.getText(); - case null, - default -> - ""; - }; - - if (fullText.isEmpty()) { + if (textToCopy.isEmpty()) { return; - } - - String textToCopy; - if (start >= 0 && end > start) { - int safeEnd = Math.min(end, fullText.length()); - textToCopy = fullText.substring(start, safeEnd); - } else { - textToCopy = fullText; } final Clipboard clipboard = Clipboard.getSystemClipboard(); @@ -115,9 +97,16 @@ try { int start = markdownTextFlow.getSelectionStartIndex(); int end = markdownTextFlow.getSelectionEndIndex(); - contextMenu.getProperties().put("selection", new int[] {start, end}); + + String fullText = ChatMessageUtils.getContent(chatMessage.get()).orElse(""); + + if (start >= 0 && end > start && !fullText.isEmpty()) { + this.selectedText = fullText.substring(start, Math.min(end, fullText.length())); + } else { + this.selectedText = ""; + } } catch (AssertionError | Exception e) { - contextMenu.getProperties().put("selection", new int[] {-1, -1}); + this.selectedText = ""; } Refactor the clipboard logic into a separate helper method and add a boundary check for the selection's start index to prevent potential runtime errors. jabgui/src/main/java/org/jabref/gui/ai/components/aichat/chatmessage/ChatMessageComponent.java [76-109] +private void copyToClipboard(String text) { + if (text == null || text.isEmpty()) { + return; + } + final Clipboard clipboard = Clipboard.getSystemClipboard(); + final ClipboardContent content = new ClipboardContent(); + content.putString(text); + clipboard.setContent(content); +} + +... + copyItem.setOnAction(_ -> { int[] selection = (int[]) contextMenu.getProperties().getOrDefault("selection", new int[] {-1, -1}); int start = selection[0]; int end = selection[1]; String fullText = switch (chatMessage.get()) { - case UserMessage user -> - user.singleText(); - case AiMessage ai -> - ai.text(); - case ErrorMessage err -> - err.getText(); - case null, - default -> - ""; + case UserMessage user -> user.singleText(); + case AiMessage ai -> ai.text(); + case ErrorMessage err -> err.getText(); + case null, default -> ""; }; if (fullText.isEmpty()) { return; } String textToCopy; - if (start >= 0 && end > start) { + if (start >= 0 && end > start && start < fullText.length()) { int safeEnd = Math.min(end, fullText.length()); textToCopy = fullText.substring(start, safeEnd); } else { textToCopy = fullText; } - final Clipboard clipboard = Clipboard.getSystemClipboard(); - final ClipboardContent content = new ClipboardContent(); - content.putString(textToCopy); - clipboard.setContent(content); + copyToClipboard(textToCopy); }); [To ensure code accuracy, apply this suggestion manually] Suggestion importance[1-10]: 7 __ Why: The suggestion correctly identifies a potential IndexOutOfBoundsException if start is not less than fullText.length() and provides a fix, which improves robustness. The refactoring into a helper method also enhances code readability and maintainability.	Medium
Update

[jetbrains-junie]

⚠️ It looks like a Junie's workflow file is missing. I've added it in the new PR #14740. Please review it and merge and then retry your query.

[InAnYan]

Have not run the code yet, but code-wise there is a small change.

Thanks for taking the issue!

[pulkitbajaj]

I have updated the PR to address the architectural feedback:

• Logic Separation: Created ChatMessageUtils in the logic module to handle content extraction using Optional<String>, as requested.
• Type-Safety: Refactored ChatMessageComponent to use an explicit selectedText string property instead of the context menu's metadata map. This makes the selection more intuitive and type-safe.
• Robustness: The selection logic extracts the substring during the MOUSE_PRESSED phase to ensure the state is captured before focus shifts to the context menu.

Ready for another review!

[pulkitbajaj]

I've applied the final refactors:

• Replaced generic Exception with IndexOutOfBoundsException and added debug logging.
• Switched to JabRef's ClipBoardManager using the Injector for StateManager.
• Initialized selectedText to prevent potential NPEs.

Ready for final review!

[InAnYan]

Okay, good job, small comments

[pulkitbajaj]

I have finalized the refactor and verified the logic:

• Declarative Injection: Switched to using @Inject for the ClipBoardManager as requested.
• Logic Polish: Implemented the early return pattern in the MOUSE_PRESSED event filter to improve readability and simplified the copy action using a standard if/else block.

Ready for the review!

[InAnYan]

Okay, almost finished

[pulkitbajaj]

I have applied the final requested changes:

• Method Extraction: Extracted the text-retrieval logic into getTextToCopy() and the selection-capture logic into extractSelectedText() to keep the setup method concise and readable.
• Style Alignment: Updated the @Inject field declaration to the requested single-line format.

[InAnYan]

@pulkitbajaj
Can you use method MarkdownTextFlow.copySelectedText? Or not?

[pulkitbajaj]

I have finalized the refactor and verified the logic:

• Selection Stability: I added a MOUSE_PRESSED event filter to consume secondary clicks when a selection is active. In JavaFX, a right-click can trigger a focus change that clears the text highlight before the context menu action executes; consuming the event 'locks' the selection for the copy action.
• Logic Delegation: The 'Copy' action now utilizes markdownTextFlow.copySelectedText() as suggested to handle markdown reconstruction.
• Method Extraction: Extracted the fallback copy logic into copyFullMessage() to keep setupContextMenu concise.

[subhramit]

I have finalized the refactor and verified the logic:

• Selection Stability: I added a MOUSE_PRESSED event filter to consume secondary clicks when a selection is active. In JavaFX, a right-click can trigger a focus change that clears the text highlight before the context menu action executes; consuming the event 'locks' the selection for the copy action.
• Logic Delegation: The 'Copy' action now utilizes markdownTextFlow.copySelectedText() as suggested to handle markdown reconstruction.
• Method Extraction: Extracted the fallback copy logic into copyFullMessage() to keep setupContextMenu concise.

Hi @pulkitbajaj
Please note that we know how to use an LLM and we would not need you a middleman if we wanted to get the issue solved in that manner. Since this PR is complete, we will not be blocking it, but you will not be allowed to contribute further for a certain period of time as a result of violating our AI usage policy.

[subhramit]

Please add a Changelog entry and mark the respective mandatory check in the PR description.

[pulkitbajaj]

I've added the changelog entry and manually updated checklist in my description. I am sorry for violating the AI usage policy and assure that this would not happen in future.

[subhramit]

Don't import static, import MouseEvent and use MouseEvent.MOUSE_PRESSED

[github-actions]

Your pull request conflicts with the target branch.

Please merge with your code. For a step-by-step guide to resolve merge conflicts, see https://docs.github.com/en/pull-requests/collaborating-with-pull-requests/addressing-merge-conflicts/resolving-a-merge-conflict-using-the-command-line.

solved