Simplified interface for children (fewer tools, larger buttons)

[cyryllo]

Hi! As mentioned in #337, I use layerling in 3D modelling workshops with children on tablets. Thanks to the touch work it now runs well there, and this is the next thing I notice in class.

The problem

layerling has a lot of tools, which is great for adults, but in the workshops the children use only a small part of them: placing basic shapes, moving and resizing, solid/hole, group, align, mirror, undo and export. The rest of the ribbon (sketches, threads, hollow, split, section view, measuring tools, STEP, and so on) mostly gets in the way. Children tap things by accident, open panels they don't understand, and lose time finding their way back. Small buttons also make this harder on a tablet.

The idea: a simple mode

A setting that switches the interface to a simplified version, for example:

• Fewer tools: only the basics in the ribbon (basic shapes, solid/hole, group/ungroup, align, mirror, duplicate, delete, undo/redo, export STL).
• A smaller shape library: box, cylinder, sphere, cone, roof, text and a few more, instead of the full library.
• Larger buttons and handles throughout, suited for fingers.
• Fewer settings and dialogs visible, so nothing important gets changed by accident.

Choosing the tools

Ideally, the teacher could choose which tools are shown in simple mode, for example with checkboxes in Settings (or in the server configuration). Every group and every age is a bit different, and the set could grow as the children learn more. If that is too much work, a fixed simple set is fine as well, and we could agree here in detail which tools belong in it.

How it could be switched on (without accounts)

I know layerling deliberately has no accounts, so this would not need any:

• a switch in Settings,
• a link parameter (e.g. ?mode=simple), so a teacher can put one bookmark or shortcut on every tablet,
• and/or a default in the server / Docker configuration, so a whole workshop installation starts in simple mode.

It would help if children could not easily switch it off themselves, for example if leaving simple mode is a bit hidden, but that is a detail.

Why it matters

It would make layerling much easier to start with for children and beginners in general, and a real alternative to Tinkercad in schools, while adults keep the full program.

I'm happy to help decide which tools belong in the simple set, based on what the children actually use, and to test it on the tablets in class.

Cyryl

[henmedia]

@cyryllo Thanks, this is a clear picture. The toolbar size in the settings already makes the buttons bigger on a tablet, but the rest needs a simple mode.

To get the set right, could you write down exactly what the children use?

• which tools in the ribbon (for example: Copy, Duplicate, Delete, Undo/Redo, Group/Ungroup, Align, Mirror, Export STL, anything else?)
• which shapes in the library
• which panels or settings they need at all (the properties panel for size and position, colours?)
• whether text should be in it

And one question about switching it on: is a link like ?mode=simple on each tablet enough for you, or do you run your own copy on a server where a default would help more?

[cyryllo]

One more thing for simple mode: the start page.

In class the children often don't see their projects, because "What's new", the welcome text, hints and update notices come first. Worse, these texts contain links, and the children tap them and end up on YouTube watching videos, which is not what should happen during a workshop. The tablets run in parental control mode so that only allowed apps can be used, and links leading out of layerling get around that.

In simple mode the start page could show only the projects and "Create a new design", with no news, no welcome texts, no videos and no links to outside pages (YouTube, GitHub, forum, release notes, support page).

[henmedia]

@cyryllo Thank you, your list and the start page point were exactly what I needed. The simple mode is built now and comes with the next version. It is a switch in the settings that the tablet remembers, and a link ending in ?mode=simple switches it on for a device too. For your Docker copy, LAYERLING_SIMPLE_MODE=always starts everyone in it and takes the switch away. The ribbon, the shapes and the properties follow your list, and the start page shows only the designs, with no links out of layerling. Children cannot leave it by a tap, it takes a press held for two seconds. The panel of a selected body is not cut down yet, so you may still see some extra settings there. I will write here when it is released, and I would be glad to hear how it works in class.

[henmedia]

@cyryllo the simple mode is out in layerling 1.99.0: https://github.com/henmedia/layerling/releases/tag/v1.99.0. Switch it on in the settings, or open a link ending in ?mode=simple; for your Docker copy LAYERLING_SIMPLE_MODE=always starts everyone in it. I would be glad to hear how it works in class.

[gogades]

Amazing work, Stefan - that is so cool.

[cyryllo]

@henmedia
Thank you so much for adding the simple mode for children! I'll try it at the next workshop and check in practice whether anything is still missing, or whether some of the remaining buttons are not needed after all. I'll report back here afterwards.

Great work, both on this and on the whole project. layerling gives real freedom: no accounts, nothing uploaded, it works offline and it can run on my own server. That is exactly what makes it a good fit for working with children.