Dev:Ref/Proposals/UI/Layer Manager

Layer Manager

by Paweł Łyczkowski

Current Issues

• Layers can't be named.
• The number of layers is limited to 20.
• Layers can't be grouped.
• Current layer manager has low discoverability - it has no description or icon, takes little space in the UI, and it is highly non-standard.

Solution

Add a dedicated "Layer Manager" window type.

It would retain how the current system works, while adding some functionality:

• lick on a square on the left side of the layer's name to show that layer and hide all others, shift-click to add to visible layers. This system works well with a 3d application, since it is a more frequent scenario that the user wants to see only one or two layers at any given time, to save computer resources and reduce viewport clutter. In a 2d application the user usually prefers to see the final 2d output, so the most common scenario is that all layers that will be visible when saving the final image are also usually visible when during the creation of the image.

• Press ~ to show all layers.

• A dot on a layer shows that it contains objects. An orange dot shows that it contains selected objects.

• Double click on a layer's name to rename it.

• Drag and drop to move layer up and down in the list (just for organizational purposes), and to drop layers or groups into groups, or remove layers or groups from groups.

• Click on the layer's or group's bar background to select it, and prepare for operations (drag and dropping, Deleting). Ctrl-click to add or remove from selection, shift click to select all layers or groups between the last selected layer or group, and the clicked layer or group (works only on layers or groups that are on the same level of grouping).

Alternatives

• Add Layer Manager as a submode to the Outliner. Pros: Would be easier to switch between the Outliner and the Layer Manager. Cons: Less discoverability. The outliner already has too much display modes.
• Make the Outliner and the Layer Manager two tabs of a single window. I'm not sure about the name of this new window.