UX Clarity Refactor

Use this workflow

1. Audit the current UI

• List primary user tasks and critical features that must remain.
• Map the main views/modes and the current navigation paths.
• Identify where vertical space is being spent without adding value.

2. Apply layout compression

• Replace oversized hero blocks with a compact summary + actions row.
• Move long descriptive copy into a short paragraph or collapsible panel.
• Use a split layout: primary content on the left, compact summary cards on the right.

3. Clarify view modes

• Separate mode switching (globe/grid/scroll) from filter controls.
• Add a view header that states what is being shown, and why.
• Show quantitative context (article count, source count, filters active).

4. Improve selection-to-results flow

• A selection should update a dedicated context panel instantly.
• Always show the selected state and a single clear action to reset.
• Order results by importance: top sources first, then top articles.

5. Build research workspaces (non-chat)

• Use an input bar at the top.
• Output in two columns: Brief on the left, Evidence/Steps on the right.
• Provide a Flow view that shows reasoning steps in sequence.
• Keep chat history optional and secondary (sidebar or history tab).

6. Enforce the no-emoji rule

• Remove emojis from UI text, logs, and docs.
• Replace with icons, bullets, or plain text labels.
• Scan the repo for emojis using ripgrep and clean all hits.

References

• See references/patterns.md for compact layout patterns, status display conventions, and sample copy rules.