Oskari UI development

[SannaJokela]

Description

Oskari UI should be developed and renewed during 2019-2020. It was proposed by Oskari JDF and community, that Oskari should be brought to the 2020s with a nice new UI. Problems arise especially when you have multiple tools open (example). This discussion widened to different possibilities and options. The needs are:

• Refreshed look for Oskari
• Streamline the available tools
• Create wizards for tools
• Take different user needs into account
• Modularity in designing new and old tools
• APIs for tools
• Architectural map of the current bundles and how they interact

These needs can be divided into:

1. Light face-lift for existing Oskari UI (scheduled for spring 2020)

• clear meaning for different tools (now e.g. Map Layer and Thematic maps get mixed by users), users can change the terms with configuration of Oskari
• need for UI design: buttons, layout (done)
• defining the needs (done)
• procurement process (City of Tampere responsible)
• own issue

2. Wizards for tools

• guiding the users in various tasks (so that the UI is not crowded with fly-outs)
• fly-outs should not overlap, instead tasks are divided by steps (you can go back a few steps if needed)
• needs also improvements in guidelines for bundles (what bundles have dependencies and how they interact)

3. RPC templates

• RPC is the best way to modify Oskari UI
• setting up a gallery of Oskari RPC layouts created by the community

Proposed by the Oskari JDF & community:

• Sanna Jokela / Gispo
• Jan Lindbom / Sitowise
• Timo Aarnio / NLS-FI

Technical assumptions

• Need of technical guidelines for modifying bundles to your own needs
• RPC UI template gallery

Dependencies

• Project should be created together with Oskari community.

Suggested implementation

1. step: face-lift for Oskari UI
2. guidelines for bundles and wizards for tools (step by step)
3. gather RPC gallery for different use cases created by the Oskari community

User stories

UI face-lift

User starts using Oskari installation. Tools can be found from the layout as indicative buttons. Colors are pleasing and the tools allow the user to see what the button does by hovering over the button. Flyouts have been redesigned to not cover the whole map when opened.

Wizards (initial thoughts)

User downloads Oskari and installation is guided by a wizard tool.

• User either downloads the default setup or connects to own Geoserver & PostGIS instances
• User chooses the needed tools (published maps, thematic maps, analysis tools etc).
• User defines the domain
• User defines user rights to admins
• ?

User creates thematic maps with Oskari.

• Click e.g. "Statistical data" button
• Choose a dataset > Filter data > Show on map
• Table, Bar Chart and styling buttons appear

User adds own data

• Click "Add own data" button
• Wizard asks you to "Login/Register"
• Buttons for registered users appear/change to active and you can now continue
• Wizard guides you to add own POIs, lines, areas or download data
• Wizard shows you the added datasets in a list and you can edit them afterwards

Does the item need to be divided into multiple independent proposals?

• Yes

Difficulty

Describe the possible pitfalls of the proposal

• This task is huge and it has to be clearly described into suitable work packages and it needs joint coordination

Goals

Describe what this proposal will accomplish

• Refreshes look for Oskari
• Market value for Oskari
• Enhanced usability for Oskari setups

Additional documentation

Links to images, mockups, layouts

• UI-team meeting 2020-02-13

• Initial plan

• Project plan

Other interested parties

List organisations or individuals willing to contribute to this proposal

• City of Tampere
• NLS-FI
• Statistics Finland
• HSY
• Lounastieto

[SannaJokela]

The first steps for UI-development should be created as separate issue (City of Tampere is now responsible for the light face lift for Oskari).

[SannaJokela]

Added a new issue on the first step towards new Oskari UI: #200

[ZakarFin]

This will need to be separated in more distinct and manageable parts (like already done for #200) for accepting as roadmap item. There has been improvements made on the UI during last years, but I'm not sure if we ever get to complete all of these :)