diff --git a/harness/ruview/mod/hooks/register.mjs b/harness/ruview/mod/hooks/register.mjs
index 27b63be0c..789cbdc23 100644
--- a/harness/ruview/mod/hooks/register.mjs
+++ b/harness/ruview/mod/hooks/register.mjs
@@ -143,7 +143,10 @@ export function register(on, options = {}) {
 
   async function open(initialMode) {
     if (MODES.includes(initialMode)) mode = initialMode;
-    await host.open({ id: PANE_ID, title: 'RuView', closeOnEscape: true });
+    // Ask for the keyboard so the view keys (1/2/3, r, c) work at once; the
+    // surface grants it only over an empty prompt. No closeOnEscape: Escape
+    // hands the keys back without closing the pane.
+    await host.open({ id: PANE_ID, title: 'RuView', focus: true });
     stop();
     startPolling();
   }
@@ -176,7 +179,10 @@ export function register(on, options = {}) {
     if (arg === 'off') { await close(); host.status(undefined); return { text: 'RuView pane closed.' }; }
     if (arg === 'refresh') { await refresh(); return { text: statusOf(model) }; }
     if (MODES.includes(arg)) {
-      if (isOpen) setMode(arg); else await open(arg);
+      if (isOpen) {
+        setMode(arg);
+        await host.open({ id: PANE_ID, title: 'RuView', focus: true }).catch(() => undefined);
+      } else await open(arg);
       return { text: `RuView pane: ${arg} view.` };
     }
     if (isOpen) { await close(); return { text: 'RuView pane closed.' }; }
@@ -198,6 +204,7 @@ export function register(on, options = {}) {
     const now = await $.clock.now();
     return viewOf(ui, shownModel(), {
       ...drawOpts(now), refreshMs: settings.refreshMs, liveRefreshMs: settings.liveRefreshMs, busy, now,
+      focused: e.props?.isFocused !== false,
       udpPort: settings.udpPort, radarConfigured: Boolean(settings.radarHost),
       onRefresh: () => { void refresh(); },
       onClose: () => { void close(); },
diff --git a/harness/ruview/mod/hooks/views.mjs b/harness/ruview/mod/hooks/views.mjs
index 425567b27..510ebf4a5 100644
--- a/harness/ruview/mod/hooks/views.mjs
+++ b/harness/ruview/mod/hooks/views.mjs
@@ -84,9 +84,13 @@ export function viewOf(ui, model, opts) {
   ]);
   const rule = pics.shimmer ? ui.Raster(pics.shimmer.grid.toRaster('shimmer')) : null;
 
-  const tabs = opts.onMode ? row(TABS.map(([m, key, label]) => Button({
-    key: `tab-${m}`, hotkey: key, label: `${m === mode ? '▸ ' : ''}${label} (${key})`, onPress: () => opts.onMode(m),
-  })), { gap: 2 }) : null;
+  // Hotkeys reach a Pane only while it holds the keyboard; say how to give it.
+  const tabs = opts.onMode ? row([
+    ...TABS.map(([m, key, label]) => Button({
+      key: `tab-${m}`, hotkey: key, label: `${m === mode ? '▸ ' : ''}${label} (${key})`, onPress: () => opts.onMode(m),
+    })),
+    opts.focused === false ? t('click the pane or press ctrl+x tab to use the keys', { dimColor: true, italic: true }) : null,
+  ], { gap: 2 }) : null;
 
   const alerts = (model?.alerts || []).map((a) => Text({ color: a.level === 'bad' ? 'red' : 'yellow', wrap: 'wrap', children: `! ${a.text}` }));
 
diff --git a/harness/ruview/mod/tests/register.test.ts b/harness/ruview/mod/tests/register.test.ts
index 3953eb7cd..901159b7a 100644
--- a/harness/ruview/mod/tests/register.test.ts
+++ b/harness/ruview/mod/tests/register.test.ts
@@ -26,8 +26,10 @@ describe('register', () => {
       runs.push(e.argv)
       return { value: { exitCode: 0, stdout: JSON.stringify(CAPTURE), stderr: '' } }
     })
+    const focusAsked: (true | undefined)[] = []
     on('ui.open', ($, e) => {
       opened.push(e.id)
+      focusAsked.push(e.focus)
       return { value: undefined }
     })
     on('ui.close', ($, e) => {
@@ -50,6 +52,7 @@ describe('register', () => {
 
     expect(text).toContain('RuView pane open')
     expect(opened).toEqual(['ruview-live'])
+    expect(focusAsked).toEqual([true]) // hotkeys reach a Pane only while it holds the keyboard
     expect(runs.length).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(1)
     const argv = runs[0] ?? []
     expect(argv[0]).toBe('node')
@@ -109,6 +112,7 @@ describe('register', () => {
     const again = await $.ui.mount({ plugin: 'ruview-live', surface: 'terminal', component: 'Pane', requestId: 'ruview-live', props: PANE })
     expect(await again.find({ type: 'Text', text: /NODES/ })).toBeDefined()
     expect(await again.find({ type: 'Text', text: /waiting for the first capture/ })).toBeUndefined()
+    expect(await again.find({ type: 'Text', text: /ctrl\+x tab/ })).toBeDefined() // unfocused: says how to focus
     const polled = runs.length
     // Step time as a live session does (the animation timer runs every 80 ms).
     for (let s = 0; s < 16; s++) {
diff --git a/harness/ruview/test/mod-showcase.test.mjs b/harness/ruview/test/mod-showcase.test.mjs
index 26819468f..fb1346d6b 100644
--- a/harness/ruview/test/mod-showcase.test.mjs
+++ b/harness/ruview/test/mod-showcase.test.mjs
@@ -160,3 +160,10 @@ test('spectrum requests, merging across captures, and live commands', () => {
   assert.deepEqual(merged[0].frames, [[2], [3]], 'frames carry across captures, bounded');
   assert.deepEqual(spectrumWith(merged, [{ ...a, bins: 8, frames: [[9]] }])[0].frames, [[9]], 'a new bin count starts over');
 });
+
+test('an unfocused pane says how to give it the keys; a focused one does not', () => {
+  const base = { mode: 'overview', refreshMs: 15000, columns: 120, rows: 34, onMode() {}, onRefresh() {}, onClose() {} };
+  const model = modelOf(spectrumCapture(false), null, 0);
+  assert.match(JSON.stringify(viewOf(UI, model, { ...base, focused: false })), /ctrl\+x tab to use the keys/);
+  assert.doesNotMatch(JSON.stringify(viewOf(UI, model, { ...base, focused: true })), /ctrl\+x tab/);
+});