feat(composer): animate composer flying up on send

Assisted-by: ClaudeCode:claude-opus-4-8
Signed-off-by: Jan C. Borchardt <925062+jancborchardt@users.noreply.github.com>

Author: jancborchardt

src/components/NewMessageModal.vue

@@ -5,9 +5,11 @@
 <template>
 	<Modal
 		v-if="showMessageComposer"
+		:class="{ 'composer-fly-up': flying, 'composer-fly-in': composerFlyIn }"
 		:size="modalSize"
 		:name="modalTitle"
 		:additional-trap-elements="additionalTrapElements"
+		@animationend.native="onComposerAnimationEnd"
 		@close="$event.type === 'click' ? onClose() : onMinimize()">
 		<div class="modal-content">
 			<div class="left-pane">
@@ -146,6 +148,9 @@ import useOutboxStore from '../store/outboxStore.js'
 import { messageBodyToTextInstance } from '../util/message.js'
 import { toPlain } from '../util/text.js'
 
+// Duration of the "fly up" send animation, matches var(--animation-slow) (300ms)
+const SEND_ANIMATION_DURATION = 300
+
 export default {
 	name: 'NewMessageModal',
 	components: {
@@ -182,6 +187,7 @@ export default {
 			draftSaved: false,
 			uploadingAttachments: false,
 			sending: false,
+			flying: false,
 			error: undefined,
 			warning: undefined,
 			modalFirstOpen: true,
@@ -200,7 +206,7 @@ export default {
 
 	computed: {
 		...mapStores(useOutboxStore, useMainStore),
-		...mapState(useMainStore, ['showMessageComposer']),
+		...mapState(useMainStore, ['showMessageComposer', 'composerFlyIn']),
 		...mapActions(useMainStore, ['getPreference']),
 		composerDataBodyAsTextInstance() {
 			return messageBodyToTextInstance(this.composerData)
@@ -281,6 +287,37 @@ export default {
 			this.isLargeScreen = window.innerWidth >= 1024
 		},
 
+		// Clear the fly-in flag once its animation has finished, so it only plays for the
+		// "Undo send" reopen and not on the next normal open
+		onComposerAnimationEnd(event) {
+			if (String(event.animationName).includes('composer-fly-in')) {
+				this.mainStore.composerFlyIn = false
+			}
+		},
+
+		// Trigger the fly-up animation and resolve once it has finished. Returns null when
+		// reduced motion is preferred. Called early in onSend so it plays immediately.
+		playSendAnimation() {
+			if (window.matchMedia?.('(prefers-reduced-motion: reduce)')?.matches) {
+				return null
+			}
+			this.flying = true
+			return this.$nextTick().then(() => new Promise((resolve) => {
+				const container = this.$el?.querySelector?.('.modal-container')
+				let done = false
+				const finish = () => {
+					if (done) {
+						return
+					}
+					done = true
+					resolve()
+				}
+				container?.addEventListener('animationend', finish, { once: true })
+				// Fallback so sending never hangs if the animation doesn't fire
+				setTimeout(finish, SEND_ANIMATION_DURATION + 100)
+			}))
+		},
+
 		async openModalSize() {
 			try {
 				const sizePreference = this.mainStore.getPreference('modalSize')
@@ -461,6 +498,10 @@ export default {
 					}
 				}
 
+				// Start the fly-up animation right away so it feels immediate, overlapping the
+				// draft save / outbox enqueue below instead of waiting for those network calls
+				const flyUp = this.playSendAnimation()
+
 				if (!this.composerData.id) {
 					// This is a new message
 					const { id } = await saveDraft(dataForServer)
@@ -486,6 +527,10 @@ export default {
 					})
 				}
 
+				// Ensure the fly-up animation has finished before the composer is unmounted
+				if (flyUp) {
+					await flyUp
+				}
 				if (!data.sendAt || data.sendAt < Math.floor((now + UNDO_DELAY) / 1000)) {
 					// Awaiting here would keep the modal open for a long time and thus block the user
 					this.outboxStore.sendMessageWithUndo({ id: dataForServer.id }).catch((error) => {
@@ -526,6 +571,7 @@ export default {
 				})
 			} finally {
 				this.sending = false
+				this.flying = false
 			}
 
 			// Sync sent mailbox when it's currently open
@@ -650,6 +696,56 @@ export default {
 <style lang="scss" scoped>
 @use '../../css/variables.scss';
 
+// Apple Mail style "whoosh": tiny anticipation dip, then the composer shoots up out of view
+@keyframes composer-fly-up {
+	0% {
+		transform: translateY(0);
+		opacity: 1;
+	}
+	15% {
+		transform: translateY(calc(var(--default-grid-baseline) * 2));
+	}
+	100% {
+		transform: translateY(-100vh);
+		opacity: 0;
+	}
+}
+
+// Fade the dark backdrop out together with the modal instead of letting it vanish instantly
+@keyframes composer-backdrop-fade-out {
+	to {
+		opacity: 0;
+	}
+}
+
+.composer-fly-up :deep(.modal-container) {
+	animation: composer-fly-up var(--animation-slow) ease-in forwards;
+}
+
+.modal-mask.composer-fly-up {
+	animation: composer-backdrop-fade-out var(--animation-slow) ease-in forwards;
+}
+
+// Reverse of the send animation: the composer drops in from the top with a tiny overshoot
+// (the backdrop fades back in through NcModal's own transition)
+@keyframes composer-fly-in {
+	0% {
+		transform: translateY(-100vh);
+		opacity: 0;
+	}
+	85% {
+		transform: translateY(calc(var(--default-grid-baseline) * 2));
+		opacity: 1;
+	}
+	100% {
+		transform: translateY(0);
+	}
+}
+
+.composer-fly-in :deep(.modal-container) {
+	animation: composer-fly-in var(--animation-slow) ease-out;
+}
+
 @media only screen and (max-width: 600px) {
 	:deep(.modal-container) {
 		max-width: 80%;

src/store/mainStore.js

@@ -83,6 +83,8 @@ export default defineStore('main', {
 			messages: {},
 			newMessage: undefined,
 			showMessageComposer: false,
+			// Set when the composer is reopened via "Undo send" so it can fly back in from the top
+			composerFlyIn: false,
 			composerMessageIsSaved: false,
 			composerSessionId: undefined,
 			nextComposerSessionId: 1,

src/store/mainStore/actions.js

@@ -2034,6 +2034,7 @@ export default function mainStoreActions() {
 			this.composerSessionId = undefined
 			this.newMessage = undefined
 			this.showMessageComposer = false
+			this.composerFlyIn = false
 		},
 		/**
 		 * Show composer modal if there is an ongoing session.

src/store/outboxStore.js

@@ -184,6 +184,9 @@ export default defineStore('outbox', {
 						logger.info('Attempting to stop sending message ' + message.id)
 						const stopped = await this.stopMessage({ message })
 						logger.info('Message ' + message.id + ' stopped', { message: stopped })
+						if (!window.matchMedia?.('(prefers-reduced-motion: reduce)')?.matches) {
+							this.mainStore.composerFlyIn = true
+						}
 						await this.mainStore.startComposerSession({
 							type: 'outbox',
 							data: { ...message },

src/tests/unit/components/NewMessageModal.vue.spec.js

@@ -0,0 +1,107 @@
+/**
+ * SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2026 Nextcloud GmbH and Nextcloud contributors
+ * SPDX-License-Identifier: AGPL-3.0-or-later
+ */
+
+import { createLocalVue, shallowMount } from '@vue/test-utils'
+import { createPinia, setActivePinia } from 'pinia'
+import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest'
+import NewMessageModal from '../../../components/NewMessageModal.vue'
+import Nextcloud from '../../../mixins/Nextcloud.js'
+import useMainStore from '../../../store/mainStore.js'
+import useOutboxStore from '../../../store/outboxStore.js'
+
+vi.mock('../../../service/DraftService.js', () => ({
+	saveDraft: vi.fn().mockResolvedValue({ id: 42 }),
+	updateDraft: vi.fn().mockResolvedValue(undefined),
+	deleteDraft: vi.fn().mockResolvedValue(undefined),
+}))
+
+const localVue = createLocalVue()
+localVue.mixin(Nextcloud)
+
+// Render the NcModal stub's default slot so .modal-content is present in the DOM
+const modalStub = {
+	template: '<div class="modal-stub"><slot /></div>',
+}
+
+describe('NewMessageModal', () => {
+	let store
+	let outboxStore
+
+	const mountModal = () => shallowMount(NewMessageModal, {
+		localVue,
+		propsData: { accounts: [] },
+		stubs: { Modal: modalStub },
+	})
+
+	beforeEach(() => {
+		vi.useFakeTimers()
+		setActivePinia(createPinia())
+
+		store = useMainStore()
+		store.newMessage = {
+			type: 'outbox',
+			data: { id: 5, type: 0, accountId: 1, to: [], cc: [], bcc: [], attachments: [], isHtml: false, bodyPlain: 'x' },
+		}
+		store.showMessageComposer = true
+		store.getPreference = vi.fn().mockReturnValue('normal')
+		store.stopComposerSession = vi.fn().mockResolvedValue(undefined)
+
+		outboxStore = useOutboxStore()
+		outboxStore.updateMessage = vi.fn().mockResolvedValue(undefined)
+		outboxStore.enqueueFromDraft = vi.fn().mockResolvedValue(undefined)
+		outboxStore.sendMessageWithUndo = vi.fn().mockResolvedValue(undefined)
+	})
+
+	afterEach(() => {
+		vi.useRealTimers()
+	})
+
+	it('adds the fly-in class on the modal while composerFlyIn is set (Undo send reopen)', async () => {
+		const wrapper = mountModal()
+
+		store.composerFlyIn = true
+		await wrapper.vm.$nextTick()
+
+		expect(wrapper.find('.modal-stub').classes()).toContain('composer-fly-in')
+	})
+
+	it('adds the fly-up class on the modal while flying (send)', async () => {
+		const wrapper = mountModal()
+
+		await wrapper.setData({ flying: true })
+
+		expect(wrapper.find('.modal-stub').classes()).toContain('composer-fly-up')
+	})
+
+	it('onComposerAnimationEnd clears the flag only for the fly-in animation', () => {
+		const wrapper = mountModal()
+		store.composerFlyIn = true
+
+		wrapper.vm.onComposerAnimationEnd({ animationName: 'composer-fly-up-abc' })
+		expect(store.composerFlyIn).toBe(true)
+
+		wrapper.vm.onComposerAnimationEnd({ animationName: 'composer-fly-in-abc' })
+		expect(store.composerFlyIn).toBe(false)
+	})
+
+	it('plays the fly-up animation before hiding the composer on send', async () => {
+		const wrapper = mountModal()
+		let flyingWhenSent
+		outboxStore.sendMessageWithUndo = vi.fn(() => {
+			flyingWhenSent = wrapper.vm.flying
+			return Promise.resolve()
+		})
+
+		const data = { id: 5, type: 0, accountId: 1, to: [], cc: [], bcc: [], attachments: [], subject: 'Hi', isHtml: false, bodyPlain: 'body', sendAt: 0 }
+		const promise = wrapper.vm.onSend(data)
+		await vi.runAllTimersAsync()
+		await promise
+
+		expect(outboxStore.sendMessageWithUndo).toHaveBeenCalled()
+		expect(flyingWhenSent).toBe(true)
+		expect(store.stopComposerSession).toHaveBeenCalled()
+		expect(wrapper.vm.flying).toBe(false)
+	})
+})