Dashboard

Purpose, audience, prerequisites, and expected result

The dashboard is AfterNight's startup and return surface. Use it to learn the application, open local images or sequences, resume recent work, start common no-image workflows, and customize the six dashboard quick actions.

This page is for first-time users and anyone managing recent work. No active image is required. A supported local file is needed only to exercise recent, thumbnail, and workspace behavior. The expected result is that you can choose the correct entry action, understand every empty/error state, and control what the dashboard remembers without confusing list removal with source deletion.

The fresh-profile Dashboard keeps onboarding visible until recent images are available.

The returning-user Dashboard replaces onboarding with a featured recent file and a searchable, sortable recent-files grid.

Reachability and availability

Item	Current behavior
Path	Start AfterNight. The dashboard also returns when the final image view and Session Console are closed.
Enabled/visible when	Identity utilities and toolbar actions need no active image. Clear recents disables when the list is empty. Search/sort appear only when at least one recent path exists. Onboarding appears only with no recents.
Supported inputs/state	Local still/sequence paths accepted by the open workflow; empty, results, and filtered-empty recent states; stored thumbnails and best-effort image metadata. Active masks and image selections do not affect dashboard actions.
Outputs/side effects	Opens dialogs/top-level workflows or creates standard views. Open file and a drop store the folder as the last open directory when the open starts and again when it ends, whatever its outcome; a recent-file open stores it after its view is made. Successful loads update recents, thumbnails, and workspace state. Search/sort/action order/pins/last action update settings.
Persistence	Recent paths are stored in the application data recent_files list; thumbnail mappings use SQLite and thumbnail images use application storage. Dashboard settings store action order, hidden IDs, grid pins, featured pin, sort, search, and last-action text.
External dependencies	None for the dashboard shell. Launched codecs, Image Integration, Extension Manager, Help fallback, and other workflows own their file/network/tool requirements.

Before you start

• Use one known small local file first. A file-name suffix can pass the drop filter even when the file content is invalid or unsupported by the decoder.
• Remove from recent files and Clear recents remove dashboard history and stored thumbnails, not source files. Show in File Browser and Copy path can expose private folder names or paths.
• A multi-file drop is processed sequentially on a worker path. Earlier files can remain open if a later file fails or you cancel.
• The dashboard records local paths and extracted display metadata. Remove private paths before sharing screenshots or diagnostics.
• The dashboard Image integration action opens the full Image Integration workflow. The beginner Quick Start instead uses Process > Preprocess > Image Integration Lite.

Procedure

Start with no recents

1. Start with an empty recent list. Checkpoint: the featured card, Recent header, search/sort row, hint, and recent grid are hidden. The welcome panel shows six capability summaries, three start cards, the drop zone, and keyboard hints.
2. Choose Open Image, toolbar Open file, Ctrl+O, or drop one supported local file anywhere on the dashboard. The visible drop-zone highlight appears only while the no-recents onboarding panel is visible.
3. Check File Open. One or two files use an indeterminate progress bar; three or more use percentage progress. CFA input can add a debayer prompt.
4. On successful view creation, check that the dock workspace opens. Cancelling before a view or a decode failure does not create a successful recent result.

Return to recent work

1. Close the final image and Session Console. Checkpoint: the dashboard refreshes from the persisted recent list without briefly showing onboarding first.
2. If an existing/decodable candidate has a usable stored or direct thumbnail, the featured card shows a filename, technical/astronomy metadata, Continue, and its own pin button. The recent grid shows available thumbnail cards.
3. Enter a partial, case-insensitive path or filename in Search by name, type, or path.... A suffix such as fits matches because it is filename/path text; the filter does not query an independent decoded-type or metadata field.
4. Select Recent, Name, or Type. Then right-click one item and choose Pin to top. Grid-pinned items remain above unpinned items in every sort.
5. Clear the search. Left-click a card or choose Open. The dashboard promotes it optimistically; a successful load persists it at the recent-list front. Any failure other than a stop you asked for - a file the engine cannot read, a demosaic failure, or a view that cannot be made - reports File open error and removes the recent path; a stop removes nothing.
6. Use Remove from recent files for one entry, or overflow Clear recents and confirm for all entries. Verify that the source file still exists.

Customize quick actions

1. Open More actions (···) > Customize quick actions.
2. Open one of the six action submenus and choose Move earlier, Move later, or Hide action. At least one toolbar action must remain visible.
3. Recover an action through Show hidden action, or choose Reset quick actions for the canonical order and no hidden actions.
4. Check the placement rule: the three start actions always render in the primary row and the other three in overflow. A move across that group boundary can persist without a visible position change until relative order within the same group changes.

Complete control and action reference

UI label/action	Type and unit	Default	Valid values/constraints	Effect	Enabled, hidden, or ignored rules	Trade-off or side effect	Scope	Persistence
AfterNight identity/version/tagline	Informational identity bar	Visible	Running application/version	Identifies product, version, and dashboard purpose	Always visible on dashboard	Display only	Application	None
Settings (Ctrl+,)	Identity utility button	Visible/enabled	Application available	Opens Settings	No active image required; not part of quick-action customization	Settings can change file, UI, network, and processing behavior	Application	Settings-specific
User Guide (F1)	Identity utility button	Visible/enabled	Bundled guide or allowed online fallback	Opens Help	No active image required; not customizable	May open network fallback when bundled docs are absent	Application	None
About	Identity utility button	Visible/enabled	Application available	Opens About AfterNight	No active image required; not customizable	Modal information only	Application	None
Open file (Ctrl+O)	Primary toolbar button	First primary action	File chooser and supported decoder path	Opens File dialog and background load	Available without active image; can be hidden but one action must remain visible overall	The open directory is stored when the open starts; successful loads update recents, thumbnails, and workspace	Selected files	Order/hidden state; open directory and successful recents
New sequence	Primary toolbar button	Second primary action	New Sequence workflow	Opens the top-level New Sequence window	Available without active image	Creating a sequence can allocate/write storage after confirmation	New sequence	Order/hidden state; workflow-specific state
Image integration	Primary toolbar button	Third primary action	Full Image Integration workflow	Opens full calibration/alignment/stacking/reporting process	Available without active image	Workflow can use substantial memory/disk	Integration project/session	Order/hidden state; process/project state
Extension Manager	Overflow action	First secondary action	Extension subsystem	Opens the separate Extensions dialog on its Browse tab	Available without active image	Can use network/disk and modify environments	Application	Order/hidden state; extension state
Clear recents	Overflow action	Second secondary action; disabled empty	Nonempty recent list and confirmation	Clears recent paths, persisted thumbnail files/mappings, grid pins, and featured pin	Disabled with no recents; No cancels	Does not delete source files; confirmation default is Yes	Dashboard history	Order/hidden state; clears recent/thumb/pin state
System info	Overflow action	Third secondary action	Application available	Opens runtime/system diagnostics	Available without active image	Copied diagnostics may reveal system details	Application	Order/hidden state
More actions (···)	Menu button	Visible	Dashboard toolbar	Opens secondary and customization actions	Always visible; it is not one of the six customizable actions	Controls discoverability	Dashboard	None
Customize quick actions	Overflow submenu	Available	Six canonical action IDs	Opens one submenu per quick action	Identity utilities are excluded	Reordering/hiding can make entry paths harder to find	Dashboard toolbar	Uses action-order/hidden-ID settings
Move earlier	Per-action menu item	First action disabled	Position greater than zero	Swaps action with prior canonical-list item	Disabled at list start	Cross primary/secondary group swaps can be visually inert	Selected quick action	Immediate persistent order
Move later	Per-action menu item	Last action disabled	Position before list end	Swaps action with next canonical-list item	Disabled at list end	Same group-boundary limitation	Selected quick action	Immediate persistent order
Hide action / Show action	Per-action menu item	Actions shown	Canonical action; at least one visible overall	Hides or restores action	Hide disabled for the final visible action	Hidden actions remain callable through menus elsewhere when such a route exists	Selected quick action	Immediate hidden-ID setting
Show hidden action	Customization submenu	Disabled with none hidden	Hidden canonical actions	Restores selected hidden action	Enabled only when hidden set is nonempty	Restores to its persisted/canonical relative position	Dashboard toolbar	Immediate hidden-ID setting
Reset quick actions	Customization action	Enabled	Any nondefault order/hidden set	Restores Open/New/Integration, then Extension/Clear/System; shows all	No-op when already canonical	Discards custom layout	Dashboard toolbar	Immediate action settings
Welcome to AfterNight / What you can do	Informational onboarding panel	Visible with no recents	Empty recent list	Shows identity, description, and six capability cards	Hidden as soon as recents exist; not restored by search-empty state	Capability text is orientation, not proof a specific input supports every process	No-recents dashboard	Determined by recent list
Open Image	Onboarding action card	Visible with no recents	Same open workflow	Emits the same open request as toolbar Open file	Hidden when any recent path exists	Subtitle lists only FITS/XISF/TIFF/RAW, not exhaustive formats	Selected files	Successful recents/open directory
New Sequence	Onboarding action card	Visible with no recents	Same New Sequence workflow	Opens New Sequence	Hidden when recents exist	Same as toolbar action	New sequence	Workflow-specific
Image Integration	Onboarding action card	Visible with no recents	Full Image Integration	Opens full process	Hidden when recents exist	Not the Lite Quick Start path	Integration session	Process/project-specific
Drop your images here to get started	Informational drop zone	Visible with no recents	Dashboard accepts local URLs; open service retains recognized suffixes	Highlights during an accepted local drag and opens retained files on drop	Highlight hidden with recents; nonlocal/unsupported-only drops do nothing	Multi-open can be partial; suffix acceptance is not decoder proof	Dropped local paths	Successful paths update recents; last directory becomes final retained file's folder
Ctrl+O to open	Onboarding hint/shortcut	Active	Application shortcut	Opens file chooser	Hint visible only with no recents; shortcut works through application action	Same open side effects	Application	None
Ctrl+N for new sequence	Onboarding hint	Stale	No assigned application shortcut	No current shortcut action	Text remains visible with no recents	Use card, toolbar, or File > New Sequence...	None	None
F1 for help	Onboarding hint/shortcut	Active	Application shortcut	Opens User Guide	Hint visible only with no recents	May use online fallback	Application	None
Featured file	Hero card	Hidden empty	Existing recent source and decodable stored/direct thumbnail candidate	Shows most-relevant recent filename and metadata	Hidden with no candidate; search does not filter it	Best-effort metadata/thumbnail may be absent or stale	Dashboard recents	Selection follows recent order unless hero pinned
Continue	Featured-card button	Enabled with featured path	Current featured path	Opens featured recent file and promotes it	Hidden with card	Load can prompt/fail; success updates recent state	Featured file	Successful recent promotion
Pin featured file / Unpin featured file	Featured-card icon button	Most recent unpinned	Existing file in recents	Makes one file override automatic featured selection, or releases it	A pin whose path leaves recents is cleared on refresh	Independent of grid Pin to top	Featured card	interface/dashboardPinnedHeroFile
Recent	Section header/count	Hidden empty	Nonempty recent list	Shows total or filtered count	Hidden only for no-recents state	Count reflects filtered path entries, even if some lack usable thumbnail cards	Dashboard recents	Derived
Search by name, type, or path...	Search field	Empty on fresh profile	Trimmed partial text; case-insensitive filename/path match	Filters recent path entries after 120 ms debounce	Hidden when no recents; clear button empties text	Persisted text can reopen directly into No matches found; no metadata-field search	Dashboard recents	interface/dashboardRecentSearchText
Ctrl+F	Dashboard shortcut	Active only when search visible	Dashboard with recents	Focuses search and selects all text	Does nothing when search is hidden	No file-system search	Dashboard	None
Recent sort	Combo option	Fresh default	Stored recent order, then stable grid-pin partition	Keeps recent-list order	Hidden when no recents	Grid pins appear first	Dashboard recents	interface/dashboardRecentSortMode=recent
Name sort	Combo option	Not fresh default	Locale-aware filename ascending, then stable grid-pin partition	Sorts visible matches by name	Hidden when no recents	Folder/path is not a tie-breaker	Dashboard recents	...=name
Type sort	Combo option	Not fresh default	Lowercase suffix ascending; locale-aware filename tie-break; grid pins first	Groups visible matches by extension	Hidden when no recents	Uses suffix text, not decoded content type	Dashboard recents	...=type
Recent thumbnail left-click	Card action	Available per rendered card	Stored path with usable thumbnail	Previews/promotes featured state and starts recent open	Card is absent if no usable thumbnail was loaded	Open may fail; any failure other than a stop removes the recent entry	Recent path	Success promotes/persists recent path
Open	Thumbnail context action	Available	Recent card	Same recent-file open	Requires rendered card	Same open prompts/failure	Recent path	Success promotion
Pin to top / Unpin from top	Thumbnail context action	Unpinned	Recent path	Stable-partitions pinned cards above unpinned cards	Requires rendered card	Does not select featured hero	Recent grid	interface/dashboardPinnedRecents
Show in File Browser	Thumbnail context action	Available	Existing local source path	Reveals source in platform file manager	Missing path shows File Not Found	External file-manager action exposes path	Recent path	None
Copy path	Thumbnail context action	Available	Recent path	Copies normalized path to clipboard	Requires rendered card	Clipboard can disclose private path	Recent path	Clipboard only
Remove from recent files	Thumbnail context action	Available	Recent path	Removes path, its stored thumbnail, and its grid pin; refreshes dashboard/menu	Requires rendered card	Does not delete source file	One recent item	Persists recent list and thumbnail mapping
No matches found	Filtered-empty panel	Hidden	Nonempty list with zero search matches	Replaces grid and suggests another term	Featured card can remain visible	Not the no-recents onboarding state	Dashboard recents	Derived from persisted search/list
No recent files state	Empty state	Fresh/cleared list	Zero recent paths	Shows onboarding; hides recent header/controls/hint/grid/featured	Clear recents or profile state controls it	Search/sort/action layout settings remain stored	Dashboard	Recent/thumb/pin history cleared; other dashboard settings retained
File Open progress / Cancel	Progress dialog/action	Opens after selection/drop/recent click	One or more retained paths	Reports background loading; Cancel stops the current read, sequence open, or demosaic and reads no further file	Fewer than three files indeterminate; three or more percent; a recent-file open is always indeterminate	Already opened files remain after later error/cancel; a file that cannot be read is reported and the open goes on, while a view that cannot be made stops the batch	Current open batch	Successful items update recents
Clear-recents confirmation Yes / No	Modal confirmation	Yes is default	Are you sure you want to delete the recent opened files?	Yes clears history/thumbnails; No preserves it	Shown only after enabled Clear action	The phrase “delete” refers to recent history, not source files	Entire recent list	Yes persists cleared state
General > Recent files limit	Settings spin box, files	20 files	1–100	Caps stored recents; applying a lower value removes oldest excess paths/thumbnails	Future additions also trim to limit	Removed history is not recoverable from dashboard; source files remain	Application recent list	general/recentFilesLimit

Behavior and state model

Dashboard states

State	Visible recent area	Transition condition
No recents	Onboarding only; featured/header/search/sort/hint/grid hidden	Persisted recent list is empty or Clear recents succeeds
Results	Optional featured card, Recent count, search/sort, hint, thumbnail grid	Nonempty list and search has one or more path/name matches
Filtered empty	Optional featured card, Recent with No matches in N files, search/sort, no-match card	Nonempty list and trimmed search has zero path/name matches

The recent store normalizes paths, removes empty/duplicate entries when loading, and keeps the most recently successful file first, up to Recent files limit; a successful save also adds each file it wrote. A file on another machine is never a recent file: a Windows network (UNC) path, whether spelled \\server\share\..., //server/share/..., in its long form \\?\UNC\server\... or as a file URL naming a host, is not added. The last-open folder is not remembered for such a path either. Grid pins are then stable-partitioned above unpinned matches after search and selected sort. Grid pinning never changes the independent featured-file pin.

The featured presenter tries the persisted hero pin first, then recent-list order. A candidate must still exist and have a usable cached, stored, or directly decodable image. It falls forward when a candidate cannot produce a hero image. When metadata is available, the card can show object, date, filter, exposure, camera, telescope, type, dimensions, and edit time; otherwise it falls back to technical file information. The date is the night the frame was taken - the day of DATE-OBS or the EXIF original date - and, failing those, the day the file says it was made, never the day the file was written. The camera is the EXIF model or INSTRUME, and for a camera RAW the make and model its decoder states. Placeholder values such as - or N/A are left out. A recent card's summary is the target, filter, exposure, and camera, each shown only when the file states it. The facts are read by background work that runs only when the session has a free thread, so they can be missing. Extraction does not edit source metadata.

Six onboarding capability cards are informational: Multi-Format Support, Frame Calibration, Star Alignment, Image Stacking, Background Extraction, and Enhancement. Their grid reflows from three to two to one column as width narrows. They are not actions and do not assert that every file supports every capability.

Runtime refresh removes grid pins and the hero pin when their paths leave recents. interface/dashboardLastAction records a human-readable audit string; no current dashboard control displays or restores behavior from that value.

Inputs, outputs, and metadata

The dashboard reads local paths, recent settings, thumbnail mappings/files, source timestamps, image dimensions, and best-effort FITS/XISF/TIFF/RAW metadata. It never changes source pixels or embedded metadata.

A successful open can create a still/sequence view and history, persist the last directory, add/promote one recent path, and write a display thumbnail. The thumbnail is reduced with Lanczos-4 to at most 2,400 pixels on its longer axis and written on a worker as an 8-bit JPEG at quality 95, whole or not at all; only the last request for a file is recorded. An image whose processing-state cards record it linear, or a camera RAW frame, receives the thumbnail autostretch, measured exactly over its samples, with a colour image's channels linked; a mosaic's thumbnail is the grey picture of its codes. Each thumbnail byte is rounded to the nearest value. Source images remain unchanged. Remove/clear deletes dashboard thumbnail artifacts and mappings only.

Search, sort, quick-action layout, pins, and last-action state are global application settings. There is no project-specific dashboard state and no restore of open image views from the previous session.

Performance and responsiveness

Recent filtering waits 120 ms after typing. Thumbnail work is batched four at a time with at most four worker loads in flight; decoded dashboard cache is capped at 256 entries and invalidates an entry when the persisted thumbnail timestamp changes. The featured presenter also uses worker decoding when no cache result exists. Grid layout and state transitions remain GUI work.

Opening images/sequences is background work, but decoder cost, CFA prompts, view creation, and many simultaneous views can still affect responsiveness and memory. Use one file first. A persisted thumbnail can lag source-file edits until the successful-open/save path regenerates it; the cache watches the thumbnail, not the source image timestamp.

Worked example

• Evidence mode: Source-and-test-derived.
• Starting state: empty recent list, Session Console closed, and one known small supported local still.
• Actions and checkpoints: verify onboarding; use Open Image; observe File Open and successful workspace view; close the view; verify results state and featured/recent entry; search by part of its filename; select Name; use Pin to top, then Remove from recent files; verify onboarding returns and the source remains on disk.
• Result and limitations: source/tests establish signals, states, persistence, filtering/sorting/pinning, and transitions. No approved file was executed, so actual decoding, thumbnail appearance, platform layout, timing, memory, and visual quality are unclaimed.

Warnings and limitations

• The displayed Ctrl+N hint is stale. There is no current application shortcut assigned to New Sequence.
• Search reads filename/path text only. “Type” in the placeholder is satisfied only when the typed suffix/text occurs in that string; decoded format and extracted metadata are not independent search fields.
• Primary and overflow actions are rendered as separate groups. Moving an item across that boundary can persist while producing no visible reordering.
• A recent path without a usable stored/direct thumbnail can count in the section total but lack a rendered card. The featured presenter may skip it for another candidate.
• Thumbnail/featured metadata is best-effort and may be missing, stale, or incomplete. It is not an authoritative FITS/EXIF inspection.
• Unsupported or nonlocal-only drops are silently ignored. Mixed drops discard unrecognized suffixes and open the retained paths; suffix filtering does not validate content.
• Multi-open is not transactional. Earlier views and recents can survive a later decoder error or cancellation.
• Clear recents uses a modal confirmation and defaults to Yes. Read the prompt before accepting; source files are not deleted.
• The fresh-profile and returning-profile states shown here were validated on the capture platform. This does not establish identical rendering on every platform, scale factor, or window size.

Troubleshooting

Symptom or exact error	Verified cause/enablement path	Recovery	Evidence source
Onboarding is absent	At least one recent path exists, even if no card renders.	Use search/recents, remove stale entries, or clear recents intentionally.	MainDashboard.cpp
Search/sort is absent or Ctrl+F does nothing	The recent list is empty, so the controls are hidden.	Open one supported file successfully first.	MainDashboard.cpp
No matches found appears immediately after restart	Search text persists and matches no current filename/path.	Use the field's clear button or enter a matching path/name fragment.	MainDashboard.cpp; RecentFilesGrid.cpp
Recent count exceeds visible cards	One or more matching paths lack a usable thumbnail mapping/file/decoder result.	Open the source through File > Open to regenerate a thumbnail, or remove the stale entry.	RecentFilesGrid.cpp; FileManager.cpp
Featured file is unexpected	A separate hero pin overrides recent order, or earlier candidates are missing/undecodable.	Use Unpin featured file; verify candidate source and thumbnail files.	FeaturedFilePresenter.cpp; MainDashboard.cpp
Clear recents is disabled	No recent paths exist.	No action is required; opening a file successfully will enable it.	MainDashboard.cpp; DashboardToolbar.cpp
A recent card reports File open error and disappears	The path is stale, the engine refused to read the file, its demosaic failed, or its view could not be made; any recent-open failure other than a stop removes it.	Locate the file and reopen from its new path; inspect Session Console/File Formats.	FileWorkflowRunner.cpp; FileManager.cpp
File Not Found from Show in File Browser	The stored source path no longer exists.	Remove the entry or restore/reopen the file at its current location.	ImageThumbnailWidget.cpp
A dropped file is ignored	It is nonlocal or lacks one of the exact recognized still/RAW/sequence/video suffixes (compared case-insensitively).	Drop a local supported file or use Open file and consult File Formats.	MainDashboard.cpp; FileDialogUtils.h; FileManager.cpp
Some dropped files open before a failure/cancel	Multi-open processes retained files sequentially and is not atomic: a file that cannot be read is reported and the next one opens, while a view that cannot be made stops the batch.	Keep wanted views; close unwanted partial results; retry the failed file alone.	FileWorkflowRunner.cpp; FileOpenTest.cpp
Moving a quick action seems to do nothing	The swap crossed the primary/secondary rendering boundary rather than another item in the same visible group.	Continue moving until its relative order changes within primary or overflow, or reset.	DashboardToolbar.cpp; MainDashboard.cpp
Hidden action cannot be hidden	It is the final visible quick action.	Show another action first, then hide this one.	MainDashboard.cpp
Lowering Recent files limit removes entries	Applying Settings trims oldest paths and thumbnails immediately.	Reopen source files to add them again; increase the limit for future retention.	GeneralSettingsPage.cpp; DialogOrchestrationCoordinator.cpp

Related workflow steps

• First Launch provides the learning path; this page is the exhaustive dashboard reference.
• Quick Start uses Image Integration Lite, not the dashboard's full Image integration action.
• Interface Overview explains dashboard/workspace transitions and global action state.
• Sequences owns New Sequence and sequence behavior.
• Image Integration owns the full dashboard-launched integration workflow.
• Settings owns Recent files limit and other application persistence controls.
• Supported Formats helps choose a source; File Formats is the compatibility authority.

References and provenance

• AfterNight dashboard, file-workflow, persistence, settings, metadata, and focused-test sources.
• Interface Overview is the authority for central-surface and active-action transitions.
• File Formats is the authority for exact codec, precision, metadata, and sequence support.
• No external standard is required for dashboard behavior.