[Feature Request] Ability to preview layouts at Edit time

[JLeybovichLFL]

Right now there is not a way to see the final layout at Edit time, you have to run to see it constructed. It would be nice to have a the Canvas automatically build the Panels as the settings are being tweaked or at a minimum a button in the Canvas inspector to build the layout so you can see what it will look like without running.

[yasirkula]

I'll keep it in mind, thanks!

[yasirkula]

One thing I didn't think about at first is the panels themselves. Panel instances are created at runtime; they mustn't be created at edit-time because that isn't how this plugin works (i.e. we can't instantiate Plugins/DynamicPanels/Resources/DynamicPanel.prefab in the preview). In the preview, we can reposition/resize only the RectTransforms that are assigned to tabs in DynamicPanelsCanvas' inspector. That can look weird for panels with multiple tabs because those tabs' RectTransforms will overlap each other in the preview. And I don't think that's how users would expect the preview to be.

[JLeybovichLFL]

Right but the content can still be disabled in Edit time as well. Its essentially just the ability to see what it will look like without entering Runtime, tweaking visual elements is always better to do at Edit time. If it is configured before Runtime as the user sees it, is there really a benefit to rebuild it at Runtime?

[JLeybovichLFL]

I think once the ability to set a reference to the DynamicPanel prefab in the inspector (the set the custom style reference issue) is done then it would make building at Edit time more doable because you wouldn't have the dependency on loading from Resource.

[yasirkula]

• The RectTransforms you assign to DynamicPanelsCanvas don't need to be direct children of that canvas and their anchor/pivot values don't matter. While initializing the canvas at runtime, these RectTransforms are made children of the canvas and their anchor/pivot values are set to the plugin's predetermined values. If I want to support preview mode, I'll have to make these changes at edit time and more importantly, somehow undo these changes after exiting preview mode
• Imagine the user modifying a panel instance in preview mode in the editor. When all tabs of that panel are docked to other panels, that panel will simply disappear and the changes made by the user will be gone. Surely this can be a confusing behaviour. What is worse is, if user changes the panel's Transform scale, then it will affect the panel's functionality in undetermined ways

What I'm trying to say is, you need to think about not just the feature you're interested in, but also the edge cases it brings to the table. I won't implement this feature until I find a way with almost no edge-cases.

[JLeybovichLFL]

Right, in an ideal world I think the layout changes made in Edit time and Runtime would persist between each other that way its always WYSIWYG. I understand that the plugin is more code driven at this time but that doesn't mean that one day it cant be completely customizable from the Editor and Scene view. Most times when working on visual things like UI you expect to have Edit time capabilities to lay things out rather than setting everything up in the code, its just a better workflow for artists and designers and therefore an easier workflow for devs.

I don't think the entire plugin needs to change right away that's why I suggested just a build layout button as an initial step towards utilizing Edit time more. If a user decides to mess with the scale, well I would say that's their decision and you can't predict all the wrong ways someone will utilize your tool.

Its better to be flexible than restrictive in this regard. Imo a good tool gives you an easy way to do something, a great tool gives you multiple ways. Code, Editor, Edit, Runtime should all be valid ways to utilize an API in Unity.

Another principle I am basing my pov on is "Edit time < Compile time < Runtime < Build time" meaning the further left you can have changes visible and testable the less time it takes to iterate on them.