Layouts
What is a layout​
A layoutLayoutA saved arrangement of the planning board - visible resources, columns, and settings - that can be reused. is a snapshot of a component: a reusable template that captures how a component is configured, so it can be shared with other users or applied in other profiles. Like a profileProfileA saved snapshot of a user’s planning board configuration, including the chosen layout and view options., a layout stores no transactional data. It only stores the settings that make sense for that component. The concept is close to a profile, but with a narrower scope and context.
As explained in more detail in the grids section, a layout typically stores:
- Selection and order of the columns
- Column width
- Column filters
- Column sorting
In the components chapter, every component lists the properties it keeps in its state. The planning board, for example, also stores the view, appointmentAppointmentA task scheduled to a resource for a specific period - the scheduled instance you see on the planning board. height, calendar mode, and more.
Layout management​
Components that support layouts carry these four buttons in the top bar:
- : Load layouts in the component
- : Save the current layout
- : Save the layout as a new layout
- : Manage layouts
These map to the standard grid features. Rather than recomposing a grid every time you start Dime.Scheduler, save the configuration with the toolbar buttons and reapply it whenever you need it.
A layout becomes available to other instances of the same component type as soon as the state is saved. Add a new component to a new user profile, and the layout is ready to use. So a layout works across profiles and users, but only for that one component type. Save the state of an open tasksOpen taskA task that has not been scheduled yet. It waits in the open task list to be placed on the planning board. grid, and the notifications grid will not see that layout, because they are different components.
Manage layouts​
User profiles matter to layouts only at profile initialization. In the management window, users can mark default layouts for the components in a profile:
When the profile loads, those default layouts are applied with it. Default layouts are optional: if none is set, the component falls back to the standard layout defined by Dime. As with profiles, users can change the component settings, or load other layouts, at any point during the session.
Load layouts​
You can also load and apply layouts on the fly. The button shows a list of available layouts. The same rule applies: a user only sees layouts that were shared (publicly or through a user groupUser groupA container that coalesces users so security, profiles and layouts can be managed and shared for the whole group at once.) or that they created themselves. Loading a layout this way does not change the default layout for the component; reload the profile and nothing carries over. As with profiles, the only real difference is the scope of the concept.