Continuum's editor is deliberately text-first. Visual structure helps you read and manipulate a model, but the source remains portable, editable text.
Text is canonical
Text mode keeps the presentation minimal. Hybrid mode adds subtle block rails, selection chrome, drag handles, and region controls without replacing the text. Blank lines separate normal blocks; explicit regions can contain blank lines and still move as one unit.
Autocomplete uses earlier assignments and folder shared variables. Tab or Enter accepts the selected suggestion. Numbers, variables, operators, units, headings, comments, and errors receive semantic styling in both light and dark modes.
Structure and folding
Headings begin with #. Labels can introduce expressions with Label: expression. Everything after // is a comment and is ignored by evaluation.
# region Operating plan
Revenue: customers * revenue_per_customer
Costs: hosting + payroll
profit = revenue - costs
# endregion
Supported region pairs include # region / # endregion, # begin / # end, and the equivalent // forms. Hybrid mode exposes a collapse control and lets the complete region move as one block.
Variables and dependencies
Definitions receive stronger emphasis; references use stable, deterministic colors. Hover an occurrence to highlight exact matches, or click it to pin the highlight.
Dependency Glow travels upstream:
- the active value receives the strongest treatment;
- direct inputs receive direct glow;
- deeper inputs receive indirect glow;
- shared folder variables can appear as terminal dependencies.
Hovering or focusing an assignment result chip can trigger the same dependency view. Plain expression chips remain copy-only.
Impact Mode
Impact Mode travels downstream after a meaningful numeric edit. Affected assignment results briefly preserve their previous value, animate the new value, and may show a signed delta. The edited root itself is excluded so the interface emphasizes consequences rather than echoing the input.
The animation window is intentionally brief, ignores tiny numeric noise, and yields to reduced-motion preferences. Dependency Glow is visually paused during the impact animation, then restored.